Lasagna "Cupcakes"

I was wandering around the internet one day.  I don't even remember what I was looking for.  But I came across Lasagna Cupcakes and I immediately shared the link on my Facebook page so that I didn't lose it.  I knew I wanted to make them.

I would like to try them again with a few adjustments.  But for the first time, I made them pretty much according to the recipe (though I can never really stick to a recipe unless it's baked goods).

Ingredients

• 1 cup marinara sauce
• 3/4 pound ground beef
• 12 wonton wrappers
• 8 ounces shredded mozzarella
• 3 ounces Parmesan cheese
• 4 ounces Ricotta cheese
• (optional) basil for garnish

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray muffin tin with cooking spray.
2. Brown beef and season with salt and pepper. Drain.
3. Cut wonton wrappers into circle shapes using a biscuit cutter or using the top of a drinking glass. You can cut several at a time.
4. Reserve 6 tablespoons Parmesan cheese and 6 tablespoon mozzarella for the top of you cupcakes. Start layering your lasagna cupcakes. Begin with a wonton wrapper and press it into the bottom of each muffin tin. Sprinkle a little Parmesan cheese, Ricotta cheese, and mozzarella cheese. Top with a little meat and marinara sauce. Use around 1-2 teaspoons of all the ingredients depending on your personal preference.
5. Repeat layers ending with marinara sauce. Top with reserved Parmesan and mozzarella cheese.
6. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until edges are brown. Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes. To remove use a knife to loosen the edges then pop each lasagna out.
7. Garnish with basil and serve.

 I followed this for the most part.  I decided I was going to make my own fire roasted tomato sauce for this though.  I had some shallots to use up and I always have garlic in the house.  so I diced those up and sauteed them until they got soft.  I added some pepper and some Italian herbs, then added the tomatoes.  I used canned tomato products that I had on hand as well.  I believe I used 1 can fire roasted tomatoes and one can tomato sauce.  I let it all cook together, low and slow for a while.  I probably cooked it for two hours or so.  Once i felt like the flavors had enough time together, I pulled out my immersion blender (I love my kitchen toys) and blended it all together.

Here's how the sauce came out:

Looks like tomato sauce.  It tasted pretty good too.  I remember thinking I could probably just eat that and be happy.

I also used a zesty Italian sausage instead of ground beef and an Italian 5 cheese blend instead of Mozzarella and Parmesan.  The recipe makes 6, but I made 12 regular cupcake sized mini lasagna.

I layered everything in and here's the before baking picture:

 I baked them until they smelled done and the edges were crispy.  (As you can see, I also didn't follow the "Cut wontons into circles" instructions.... have you noticed that I'm bad at following directions?)

And the finished product:

They were yummy.  I actually took leftovers to work with me and used the dreaded microwave there to eat the rest (for those that know me, know this was a huge step ... I have what I like to call food paranoia... that mostly centers around other people and a lack of trust there).

The next time I make them, I would like to make my own pasta sheets (another of my kitchen toys... a pasta roller attachment for my KitchenAid Mixer).  That's really the only thing that I would really change (other than my improvised changes that I used this time).

Try them... you'll like them.

Thanks (and I need to do more of these... work schedule has been random lately and I haven't had much time to sit at the computer... I still need to put cake pictures on the computer so I can do that entry... and I have another installment of Linda's Herb and Spice World Tour with an herb that I like quite a bit) ... and happy eating!