Manicotti (or lasagna if you’d rather)

Ingredients

• Fresh semolina pasta rolled into sheets, or boxed manicotti noodles or lasagna sheets
• Marinara sauce, usually without meat, watered down a bit if using dried pasta

Italian sausage

• 1 lb ground mild Italian sausage
• 0.5 tsp salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 0.5 tsp garlic powder (or 1 teaspoon of minced garlic)
• 0.5 tsp onion powder (or a couple tablespoons of fresh minced onion)
• 1 egg
• 0.5 cup grated romano or asiago
• 0.25 cup of unseasoned bread crumbs

Spinach and ricotta

• 1 lb ricotta cheese
• 1 bag of fresh spinach
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• 1 egg
• 1 cup shredded cheese (Romano and Asiago blend)
• 0.25 cups chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (or 2 tbsp dry)
• Fresh ground pepper

For topping

• 1 cup fresh mozzarella

Directions

1. Rinse and chop any herbs.
2. Put everything in the mixer and stir until even, about 1 minute.
3. Stuff into manicotti or lasagna, bake at about 350°F for 45 minutes to an hour, depending on thickness (for using fresh egg pasta).
4. Top with mozzarella when it’s about half an hour from done.

Notes

• Yields one 9x9” pan
• To freeze, cover tightly and freeze raw. Thaw completely before baking as directed.