Lamb, tomato, pasta, and cheese! This comfort food dish is a sure fire option for Feel Good Friday.
I have been down on myself for a bit and I am coming out of this abyss even better than I was, thanks in big part to a lot of amazing people in my life that have poured into me. I've been focusing a lot more on self love, and that feels amazing. Keeping up with the feel goods, I decided to cook a nice comfort meal for myself this last Friday. While cooking I reflected on some of the beautiful gems I've picked up through this stretch.
Know your worth!
You're not perfect, but you're still worth it.
None of us are perfect. I'm sure all of us would agree on that. We all have flaws. Yet, it's our flaws that really make us unique. Our flaws give us character. It's our flaws that drive us to be outstanding, to accomplish goals, and to make mistakes, which always provide learning and growth. As the great quote from the great Michael Jordan says, "I've missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I've been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed." Our flaws really make us who we are. And that's not a bad thing. We are not beautiful despite our flaws. We are beautiful because of our flaws. Anyone who does not accept our flaws will never see the true value in us. Anyone who does not accept our flaws does not deserve us.
Perfection is a travesty. It's a mirage that none of us should seek. Worth is not measured in proportion to perfection. We all have things we could be better at and we all make mistakes. That just means we are all human. That does not mean we are not worthy as people. As Kanye West said on Only One, "no you're not perfect but you're not mistakes." Here's something that an amazing friend asked me. "Who do you think you are?! You have the audacity to think you're not supposed to make mistakes? Do you really think you are supposed to do everything right the first time??" You're not perfect, but you're still worth it. I was really pondering on the meaning of worth and I realized that it's spiritual to me. I feel that our worth is intertwined with our soul. God made each of our souls and he allowed each of our souls to be different. Our differences will always limit all of us from perfection, but it's also our differences that gives each of us value.
Be self aware.
Mindfulness is so essential. It's important to understand our thoughts, because thoughts become feelings and feelings become behaviors. We must keep our negative thoughts in check. Otherwise, there will be a lot of regrettable actions taken. Obviously we experience the world from our perspective. I've always understood that, but recently I was enlightened to think deeper on that. We don't see things as they are. We see things as we are. We see things based off how we're feeling.
We don't see things as they are. We see things as we are.
With that being said, it's essential to routinely check in with ourselves. How are we feeling? How are we moving? Are we operating in alignment with our values, with our spirit? Are we listening to feedback from others? It's important that we take note of how are interactions are affecting the people in our lives. Sometimes we have blind spots, detrimental things we often do/say that we do not notice. I know I do. That's why I have started seeing a mental heath therapist. I really want to keep those things in check so they don't ruin the relationships in my life. That's also why I now embrace checking in with others routinely. Not only is it good to check on others, but those mindful conversations with others always reveal something about myself to me.
Choose yourself.
All relationships of all types require compromise at some point. Compromise is not a bad thing. It's sacrifice for the greater good. But it's important that there is balance in the compromise. Its important that there is balance between the investment and the return. And when we are not getting out what we are putting in it's important that we are wise enough to pull out. Don't fall trap to thinking if you put even more in you'll get more out. Nah. I know a guy who has a food blog which is named based off a play on his own name and lemons who did that. Sometimes it takes being a numb frog to realize that scorpions will always do scorpion shit. When you get your strength back make sure to point the finger at the mirror.
People only treat you how you allow them to.
We have to stay mindful that we have the power to protect ourselves. It doesn't feel good at first, taking accountability for how others treat you. But rejecting a victim mindset and embracing personal responsibility ultimately empowers you to prevent others from hurting you again, and that feels amazing. People only treat you how we allow them to. How sly the slippery slope of self betrayal is....."I'll just sacrifice on this need, because I want to meet their needs."....."I'll just deal with the lack of reciprocation of my energy for now because one day they'll see how great I'm being and they'll return that."....."I suppose I'll choose their happiness over my own, because their happiness makes me happy, right?".....Nah. Choose yourself. Love yourself. Be kind to yourself. And give yourself some grace when you fuck up.
Be xXesty!
Life is amazing! We live and learn and grow. The growth is painful sometimes. Evolution isn't always a pleasurable process. But the end result is blissful. God has called me to grow in the past and it was difficult but I grew. I grew into the wonderful person I am today. God is calling me to grow again. I'm happy to be on this path of personal development.
And throughout it all, I'll be in my kitchen serving up Feel Good Friday vibes to myself. Give this recipe a shot when you want to have a feel good Friday. I promise it won't let you down!
The Recipe
Here's what you'll need:
The Lasagna
1 lb ground lamb
1 small onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup dry red wine
1 tbsp olive oil
24 oz marinara sauce
Sea salt
Black pepper
1 tbsp fresh thyme, chopped
1 tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped
1 tbsp, fresh oregano, chopped
2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
9 lasagna noodles, cooked al dente
The Filling
16 oz cottage cheese
15 oz ricotta cheese
1 egg
2 tbsp parsley, chopped - plus more for garnish
4 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
To Make The Meat Sauce
Step 1
Place a deep pan or dutch oven over medium/high heat and add olive oil, 1 lb ground lamb and diced onion. Saute, breaking up the meat, until lamb is no longer pink. Add chopped garlic and sauté another minute until fragrant.
Step 2
Add 1/4 cup red wine and stir for 2 minutes or until wine is nearly evaporated. Add 24oz marinara sauce, salt and pepper, 1 tbsp thyme, 1 tbsp rosemary, 1 tbsp oregano, and 2 tbsp parsley. Bring to a simmer then cover and cook 5 minutes.
To Make The Cheese Sauce
Step 1
In a large mixing bowl, combine 16 oz cottage Cheese, 15 oz ricotta, 1 cup mozzarella cheese, 1 egg and 2 tbsp parsley.
To Make The Lasagna
Total Time: 1 hour and 30 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Rest time: 30 minutes
Step 1
Preheat oven to 375˚F. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add salt and 9 lasagna noodles. Cook until al dente according to package instructions.
Step 2
Lay 3 noodles on the bottom of a deep 9x13 casserole dish, spread on 1/3 of the meat sauce and sprinkle with 1 cup mozarella cheese. Spoon on and spread the top with 1/2 of your cheese sauce.
Repeat until you have 3 layers of noodles: Add 3 noodles, 1/3 meat sauce, 1 cup mozarella cheese, 1/2 cheese sauce Add 3 noodles, remaining 1/3 meat sauce, remaining 1 cup mozarella.
Step 3
Cover the dish with foil and bake at 375˚F for 45 minutes. Remove foil and broil for 3 to 5 minutes, or until cheese turns golden. Let lasagna rest 30 min before slicing. Garnish with extra parsley.
Enjoy!
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