<P>Preparing a homemade meal is a great way to impress your date with not only your cooking skills (don’t worry if yours are lacking) AND your thoughtfulness! Cooking is, in some ways, an art. ‘But you don’t have to be an artist to make a good tasting meal. This article is going to help you cook a terrific meal, complete with sides and dessert, without bogging you down with confusing and time-consuming techniques. This won’t be head chef work, but by golly you’ll certainly convince your date that you can do a thing or two around the kitchen!</P><P>First, we’re going to start off with a nice appetizer. Since the main dish is going to be lasagna, which takes nearly an hour to cook, it’s always a good idea to have an appetizer you and your date can munch on while waiting for the meal to cook. The following recipe is for an easy, yet tasty homemade cheese ball. The best thing about this cheese ball is that you can wrap up the leftovers and pop it into the fridge for a snack later on.</P><P>Cheese Ball</P><P>What You’ll Need:<BR />1 (8-oz) package of cream cheese<BR />1 (1-oz) package of ranches dressing mix<BR />1 1/4 cups of shredded Cheddar cheese<BR />3/4 cup of chopped pecans</P><P>How to Make It:<BR />First, you need to soften the cream cheese. To do this, simply put it in a bowl and mash it with a fork until it’s nice and soft. Add in the dressing mix and cheddar cheese, then mix well. Shape the mixture into a ball, then roll it in the pecans until fully coated. Place the cheese ball on a serving dish and cover it with plastic wrap. Refrigerate until time to serve. Serve with crackers (preferably Ritz or Town House’s "toppers").</P><P>Next is the main dish. Lasagna is a fairly easy dish to put together, but it does take a while to cook. Be prepared to spend about 25 minutes preparing the dish, then 55 minutes for it to cook. If you want it to come out of the oven soon after your date arrives, start cooking about an hour and 20 minutes before your date is due to show up.</P><P>Lasagna</P><P>What You’ll Need:<BR />1 lb ground beef<BR />9 lasagna noodles<BR />1 (32-oz) jar of spaghetti sauce<BR />32 ounces of cottage cheese<BR />3 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese<BR />2 eggs<BR />1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese<BR />2 teaspoons of dried parsley<BR />1/2 cup water<BR />Salt and pepper to taste</P><P>How to Make It:<BR />In a large skillet, cook the ground beef over a medium heat. The meat is done when it’s brown all the way through. To drain the excess grease, pout the meat into a colander, then dump it back into the skillet. Add the spaghetti sauce and cook over a low heat for about five minutes. While the sauce is simmering, get a large bowl and mix together the cottage cheese, 2 cups of the mozzarella cheese, half of the grated Parmesan, the eggs, parsley, salt, and pepper. Mix this well. Get a 9 x 13-inch baking dish (casserole pan) and spread about 3/4 cup of the sauce mixture in the bottom of the pan. Lay three uncooked lasagna noodles over the sauce. Spread 1 3/4 cups of the cheese mixture over the noodles, then pour 1/4 cup of sauce over that. Repeat this layering two more times. Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses on top of the lasagna. Gently pour 1/2 a cup of water around the edges of the pan to keep it from drying out. Cover with aluminum foil and bake at 350 Online Degrees F for 45 minutes. Remove the aluminum foil, then bake for another 10 minutes. Let it stand about 10 minutes before cutting and serving.</P><P>That sounds nom nom, but what is lasagna without salad and bread? If you are out to impress, then you should definitely consider whipping up a quick salad and toasting some French bread slices. The best thing about salad is that as a side dish, it doesn’t have to have a lot of extra ingredients, and you can toss in pretty much whatever you like!</P><P>Salad</P><P>What You’ll Need:<BR />1 head of leafy Green lettuce<BR />1/2 cup of grated cheddar cheese<BR />Diced green onions (optional)<BR />Diced t
