What’s for Dinner: Harvest Lasagna Recipe

Here at Mesa Park Vineyards, one of our favorite things to do is prepare good food and enjoy it paired with wine and good friends. We love sharing our favorite recipes with you from time to time, and this Harvest Lasagna is one of our favorites.

Harvest Lasagna
Serves 6-8 people

Ingredients:

• 2 eggplants
• Lasagna noodles, enough for three layers
• 3 zucchini, cut lengthwise, 1/4 in. thick
• 3 tbsp. olive oil
• 2 pound plum tomatoes, quartered and seeded
• 2 clove garlic, crushed
• 1 pound ground turkey
• 1 tsp. herbs de Provence
• 1 jar marinara sauce (or make it yourself)
• 2 1/2 cup Italian blend cheese
• 1 jar Alfredo sauce (Or make it yourself)

Directions:

Preheat oven 450 degrees oven racks: upper and lower thirds of oven. Layer eggplant in colander and sprinkle with salt. Let stand in sink for 20 minutes, then pat dry.  Cook lasagna noodles, according to directions. Arrange zucchini on greased baking sheet, brush with olive oil, season with salt and pepper. Bake 15 minutes till tender. Transfer to plate, cool.

Arrange eggplant on baking sheet, brush with olive oil. Arrange tomatoes on second sheet, drizzle with olive oil, roast 25 minutes. Reduce oven to 400 degrees. Meanwhile, in a larger skillet over med. heat, cook the garlic in 1 tbsp olive oil, until golden. Add turkey and herbs and cook over medium heat, crumbling the meat, about 5 minutes. Stir in half marinara sauce. Grease a 9 by 13 baking dish, add remaining marinara sauce.

Add layer lasagna noodles, spoon turkey mixture on top; sprinkle 1/2 cup cheese. Add another layer of lasagna noodles, 1/2 cup alfredo sauce, the zucchini, 1/2 cup cheese and the tomatoes with their juice. Add final layer of lasagna noodles, 1/2 cup white sauce, then top with eggplant. Spread with the remaining 1 cup white sauce.

Cover dish with foil and bake 40 minutes. Uncover Sprinkle with remaining 1 1/2 cup cheese, bake until golden, about 10 minutes. Let cool 20 minutes. Enjoy!

Pair with 2009 Mesa Park Vineyards Estate Family Reserve Red.

More:

• Recipes
• Buy a case of Mesa Park wine and receive 20 percent off and free shipping

What’s for dinner: A bacon-wrapped pork loin with corn succotash recipe

The sun beats down on the vines all day long on the Western Slope, helping the hundreds of acres of grapes ripen with delicious sugars and structure that make Colorado wine so unique.

That same heat keeps us from wanting to do too much outside during the day, however. It even zaps our mighty appetites until the sun has long since set — we don’t eat dinner until close to 9 p.m. on some evenings. But once the sun has dropped and the mercury has dipped, we light up the grill, soak ourselves in bug spray and enjoy a relaxed Palisade evening with this pork entrée and a bottle of our 2009 Family Reserve Red.

Bacon-wrapped pork loin with corn succotash
Prep: 1 hour
Cooking: 1 hour

Ingredients:

• 1-2 pounds of pork loin
• 4 to 6 slices of bacon
• 4 ears of Olathe corn
• Green bell pepper, diced
• Onion, diced
• 2 cloves fresh garlic, chopped
• 1 cup Mesa Park Vineyards 2009 Family Reserve Red
• 1 cup apple cider vinegar
• Butter

Directions:

Wrap your pork loin in slices of bacon, place in a dish with 1 cup of apple cider vinegar and 1 cup red wine. Marinate for 1 hour. Bake in a 350-degree oven for 1 hour.

Once the pork is in the oven, in a sauté pan start with 1 tablespoon of butter, then add diced onion and green bell pepper and cook on medium heat for 10 minutes. Add chopped garlic, cook for an addition 1-2 minutes.

Cook corn in husk on outside grill for 20 minutes. Remove husk and cut corn of the cob with a sharp knife. Add corn to onion and bell pepper mix.

On the side: We love to take advantage of our gardens come dinnertime. Here’s a quick salad to put together from your garden (or the community market such as the Palisade Sunday Market) that serves as a perfect partner to the pork. Pick and rinse lettuce from the garden, add accruements of your choice such as dried cranberries, cottage cheese, onions, croutons and salad dressing.

Pair with:
Mesa Park Vineyards, Grand Valley, Estate Bottled 2009 Family Reserve Red ($22). This blend of 40% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc and 30% Cabernet Sauvignon features blueberries and plums on the nose and a smooth chocolate finish.

More:

• Head to the wine shop
• Recipes