Good Monday morning. We’re back in the saddle, and while it was nice to take a break, it also felt a little alienating.
I don’t like being disconnected, and doing the headlines every morning helps me stay on top of what’s happening in the world. Sometimes, I end up feeling like it might be better not to know. But knowledge is power, as they say. And these days we could also use a little empowerment.
For some reason that makes very little sense to me, the mysterious decision-making system for deciding the designation of national days has determined that the dog days of summer would be a GREAT time to celebrate one of the heaviest, cheesiest, and calorie-laden Italian pasta dishes out there.
I’m speaking, of course, of lasagna. Now, lasagna is delicious – don’t get me wrong – but not something I am likely to order when it’s 90+ degrees and I’m wandering around most of the time in shorts, swimsuits, and tank tops.
Lasagna, as it turns out, is one of the oldest pasta dishes. It appears to have originated in Greece as a special occasion entree, which sort of makes sense when you think about all the layered (though made with phyllo dough, and not pasta) delicacies that country has produced (think Spanakopita and Baklava, for example).
There are also some theories floating around on the interwebs that lasagna actually has its roots England, (which makes no sense to me whatsoever), and/or was brought to Italy by the ancient Romans, who conquered the ancient Greeks and recognized a good thing when they saw it.
It appears, though, that the modern-day version of lasagna (or lasagne, as it’s known it Italy, because there’s more than one pasta sheet involved) – a basked dish that features layers of noodles, sauce, cheese (or, more traditionally, bechamel, which is a white sauce made from mixing butter, flour, and nutmeg-spiced milk), and either meat or vegetables – originated in Naples.
There was also an early version of the dish that may well have been green, thanks to the addition of spinach in the noodle dough.
The oldest transcribed text that mentions lasagna was a 1282 poem transcribed by a Bolognese notary. The first actual recipe for lasagna, however, appeared in the early 14th century, featuring a dough that was flattened, then boiled, then sprinkled with cheese and spices.
It stands to reason that a dish this old has many variations. These days, one can find recipes for seafood lasagna, vegetarian lasagna, ground turkey lasagna, and lasagna made with a variety of noodle substitutions, including thinly sliced zucchini and sweet potato.
There are also dessert lasagnas, which are really more like layer cakes, because as far as I can tell, none of them call for noodles.
I am old enough to remember the lasagnagate uproar over Sandra Lee’s semi-homemade lasagna recipe that called for Campbell’s tomato soup and cottage cheese. At the time, Lee was dating Andrew Cuomo, who was deep into what would be his first successful run for governor (though not his first EVER run for governor).
Needless to say, the former governor’s very Italian mother, Matilda, did not approve. These days, though, cottage cheese is experiencing a sort of renaissance, and people are putting it in everything – even using it to make flatbreads and ice cream.
I am personally a fan of cottage cheese, and must confess to having used it to make a lighter version of lasagna – though I did use actually tomato sauce and not tomato soup. The results were very tasty. To each their own.
It will be cloudy today, with temperatures topping out in the mid-80s.
In the headlines…
As the presidential campaign enters a critical final 100 day stretch, Republican nominee Donald Trump and his running mate, JD Vance, rallied supporters on Saturday in a state that hasn’t backed a GOP candidate for the White House since 1972.
The ground has shifted under both political parties since June 27, when President Joe Biden’s poor debate performance threw the Democratic Party into chaos and prompted Trump’s team to eye an expanded electoral map.
Meanwhile, Vice President Kamala Harris traveled to Pittsfield, Massachusetts, on Saturday where she was expected to raise more than $1.4 million, her campaign announced.
Former president Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama have endorsed Harris in her White House bid, giving the vice president the expected but still crucial backing of the nation’s two most popular Democrats.
In the week since Biden dropped his re-election bid, Harris has largely erased the Republican nominee’s edge in polling and fundraising. And Trump has seen his vice-presidential pick, JD Vance, privately second-guessed by fellow Republicans.
Trump stopped short of promising to establish an official U.S. bitcoin strategic reserve currency during his Saturday keynote speech at the biggest bitcoinconference of the year.
Biden, who belatedly opted against seeking reelection, today will pay a visit to the library of the last president to make the same difficult choice, more than a half-century ago.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will make the case for the Biden administration’s expanded commitment to Asia and the Indo-Pacific region more broadly as he visits Laos, Vietnam, Japan, the Philippines, Singapore and Mongolia this week and next.
The Paris Olympics’ opening ceremony got underway after a rough start to the Summer Games on Friday, July 26, with rainy skies over the Seine and suspected acts of sabotage targeting France’s flagship high-speed rail network.
Revolution ran like a high-voltage wire through the wacky, wonderful and rule-breaking Olympic opening ceremony that the French capital used to astound, bemuse and, at times, poke a finger in the eye of global audiences on Friday night.
On the first sunny day of the Paris Olympics, U.S. Starts shined. Simone Biles and LeBron James dazzled, so did the U.S. women’s soccer team. Torri Huske grabbed some spotlight. Haley Batten made a name for herself by earning a mountain biking silver medal.
A calf injury didn’t slow Simone Biles down during yesterday’s gymnastics qualifier. Despite a noticeable limp, the 27-year-old dominated with an all-around total of 59.566 on uneven bars, vault and the floor routine.
Amid an outbreak of listeria that has killed two people in the US and sickened around three dozen others, Boar’s Head Products announced it would recall more than 200,000 pounds of deli meat, including all liverwurst products now available on the market.
The announcement came after the U.S. Department of Agriculture said that it had detected listeria bacteria in an unopened package of Boar’s Head liverwurst from a Maryland store.
The entirety of New York is experienced “moderate” air quality over the weekend as western wildfire smoke reached the East Coast. But officials said it was nowhere near last summer’s smoky skies.
Environmentalists are suing Hochul over her decision to indefinitely pause a proposed $15 toll in New York City that was intended to reduce traffic congestion and lower carbon emissions in Manhattan.
Before Hochul paused it, the tolling program lost the little labor support it had when the Transport Workers Union withdrew its backing this spring.
Several high-level staffers at New York’s cannabis regulator are calling it quits after Hochul axed the agency’s head and blasted it as a “disaster.”
A Columbia County cannabis processor has filed a lawsuit against the state of New York accusing the OCM of using its regulatory authority to punish her after she spoke out publicly last year about unlawful conduct in New York’s marijuana industry.
For years, there has been an undercurrent of discontent surrounding the State Museum — by some members of the public, but also by employees and others familiar with its inner workings.
New York’s plan for confronting bird flu if it begins spreading among people relies heavily on a vast stockpile of flu treatment medicine. But experts worry the stockpile is missing a key tool.
At least two foster care organizations have filed for bankruptcy as they attempt to honor claims made under the Child Victims Act. Others worry they are next.
An advocacy coalition is urging state lawmakers to hold hearing on why the DFS is allegedly declining to compel insurance companies to cover claims for systemic sexual abuse of children allegedly concealed by the Catholic church and other institutions.
The state Department of Financial Services has released guidance for insurers to follow when using artificial intelligence or other nontraditional information sources in underwriting and pricing processes.
Mayor Eric Adams signed an emergency order Saturday putting the kibosh on parts of a controversial City Council ban on solitary confinement at city jails.
The order, one of three Adams issued on Saturday that pertained to the jails, was an unusual step that came only one day before the law was set to go into effect.
Elected New York City officials and community advocates are slamming Adams’ executive order, claiming it dismantles a law meant to ban solitary confinement and is a “shameful” abuse of power.
Adams on Friday announced that a new scanner would search for guns on the subway. Riders who refuse to be scanned, he said, will not be allowed to enter the system.
Adams’ office reportedly has sent background check information on Randy Mastro to the City Council, a sign the mayor is on the verge of nominating the controversial litigator as his administration’s next top lawyer.
Adams announced the formation of the New York City Rat Pack, described as an “elite squad of dedicated anti-rat activists,” complete with its own logo and merchandise. And he wants New York City’s most rabid rat-haters to join.
One of the country’s largest auto insurance companies is seeking to question Frank Carone, Adams’ political confidante, as part of a civil lawsuit alleging corporate entities Carone co-founded were involved in orchestrating a sprawling “money laundering scheme.”
Brad Lander wants to be mayor of New York City, but he’s still a blatant traffic scofflaw, despite pledging during his successful run for comptroller to improve his dismal driving record
A 15-year-old boy was found dead on a roadbed at a subway station in Queens on Friday. The boy, whom officials have not identified, most likely died as a result of so-called subway surfing, the police said.
New York City students will have expanded access to the transit system beginning this coming school year, city officials announced.
Hundreds of probationary firefighters were honored at a graduation ceremony Friday in Brooklyn, where embattled FDNY Commissioner Laura Kavanagh spoke in what will likely be her last address before leaving the department.
Overdose deaths linked to a synthetic opioid 100 times stronger than fentanyl have more than doubled in the city — while a new lethal sedative has been detected for the first time in the Big Apple’s drug supply.
Borough President Antonio Reynoso has thrown serious shade on a developer’s controversial plan to build a high-rise apartment complex alongside the Brooklyn Botanic Garden.
Hundreds marched from Manhattan to Brooklyn yesterday in support of a city councilwoman charged with biting an NYPD deputy chief — with the organizers linked to the Chinese Communist Party.
Summer Rising is falling — with attendance for the K-8 summer program nosediving, and taxpayers wondering where the $350 million spent for the ill-conceived Covid-era classes and camps has gone.
New York City’s homicide rate remains higher than it was before the pandemic in 2019 — even as the national average has largely returned and even dropped below pre-pandemic levels, a major new national crime study has found.
The Fulton Transit Center in Lower Manhattan upped security over crime concerns — but tenants say there are lingering issues and uncertainty about the future even though things have gotten better.
A Staten Island Ferry skipper is demanding $1 million in damages from the city after a Gilligan-like mishap in the pilot house.
The first round of voting began last week for Honorary NYC Dog Mayor, and incumbent East Village Basset Hound Sally Long Dog will be passing the bone to one of 15 adorable canine-didates from the five boroughs.
At least one person is dead and another six people were injured when gunfire erupted inside a crowded Rochester park last night, according to police.
A victim in their 20s was killed while another person was left in life-threatening condition following the shooting at Maplewood Park around 6:20 p.m., Rochester police said.
The state Department of Transportation plans overnight lane reductions on Interstate 90 beginning today as part of a pavement improvement project.
An immediate cleanup of the state Superfund site at Taconic Plastics to eliminate PFAS contamination in local drinking water supplies will begin in August, the state Department of Environmental Conservation said.
Two men were arrested and charged with burglary at the College of Saint Rose campus Saturday morning.
Photo credit: George Fazio.
