Lasagna

INGREDIENTS
9 uncooked lasagna noodles
1 onion, chopped
5 garlic cloves, minced
2 28-ounce cans crushed tomatoes
1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes
1 tablespoons oregano
1 tablespoons basil
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 pound sweet Italian sausage
1 pound hot Italian sausage
1 pound fresh mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced
8 ounces ricotta cheese
8 ounces cottage cheese
½ cup Parmesan cheese

1. In a large skillet over medium heat, brown sausage with onion and garlic. Drain fat.
2. Mix in oregano, basil, salt, pepper and tomatoes. Simmer for 30 to 45 minutes.
3. Bring a large part of salted water to a boil. Add lasagna noodles and cook 8-10 minutes, drain.
4. In a small bowl mix together cottage and ricotta cheese.
5. In a large baking dish put 2 tablespoons of the sauce or enough to cover the bottom of the pan to prevent sticking. Make a layer of lasagna noodles (3 noodles per layer). Top with a third of the sauce, ½ of the ricotta-cottage cheese mixture, and 1/3 of the mozzarella cheese. Repeat with another layer. Top with remaining noodles, sauce, mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.
6. Bake at 375 degrees for 30-45 minutes.

Spicy stuffed bell peppers

1.5 pounds Hot Italian sausage
1/2 yellow onion diced
5 cloves garlic diced
1/4 green bell pepper fine diced
5 Cremini or baby portobello mushrooms diced
9 slices mozzarella cheese
3 large red bell peppers
Dash red pepper flakes
1 Tsp pepper
1 Tsp salt
1 Tsp grill seasoning
1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs
olive oil for drizzling

Preheat oven to 350. Cut very bottoms of bell peppers off, just enough to make them stand upright on their own. Cut tops off and de-seed. Drizzle with olive oil and put in the oven for 10 minutes. In sauté pan break up sausage and add, onions, garlic, diced bell pepper, mushrooms, salt, pepper, and grill seasoning. When meat is browned add bread crumbs and coat all the meat with them. When bell peppers are done remove them from the oven and allow them to cool to touch. Place one slice of cheese over the top of the bell pepper and then push it down inside to form a bowl shape and coating the entire inside of the pepper. Add enough of your meat to fill half the bell pepper and then add a second layer of cheese (placing the cheese in there in a cup/bowl shape will make it so that your bell pepper is lined with cheese and you get some in each bite, similar to an ice cream drumstick being lined with chocolate). Place remaining meat into pepper and then place last slice of cheese over the top so it hangs over the sides. Place the peppers uncovered in the oven for 10 minutes. The cheese should melt over the top of the pepper and form a cheese lid. Remove and enjoy.

* For the mozzarella you can use either fresh or deli mozzarella. For this recipe I had the deli slice me up exactly how much I wanted. I didn't buy fresh this week simply because I wasn't making anything that would use it, and I wouldn't have been able to finish it before it expired. If you use fresh double the amount you use because the slices will be smaller and you will need to cover the same amount of area as a deli slice would.

** I realize most stuffed bell peppers are made with rice and other stuff. These are my all man meat bell peppers though, with none of the yicky girly rice and froo froo things.

** I also prefer sausage to ground beef because you get far less fat and water in the pan and don't have to do any draining, plus it is already seasoned.