Kitchen Guy

Take the mystery out of stuffing pasta and bake it in a delicious easy-to-make tomato sauce.

1/2 pound Italian sausage
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 cup diced onion
2 14 oz. cans stewed tomatoes
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. dried basil
1 bay leaf
6 oz. tomato paste
2 eggs
2 pkgs frozen spinach, cooked, cooked, drained and chopped
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 cups Mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 cup Ricotta cheese
1/4 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
8 cooked manicotti noodles
2 Tbsp. fresh parsley, minced
salt and pepper to taste

Saute sausage in a large skillet over medium heat, breaking up meat with a spoon. When cooked through, drain and reserve. Heat some olive oil in the same skillet and add onions, cooking until tender, about 8 minutes. Add stewed tomatoes, breaking up with a potato masher or a spoon, dried oregano and basil, bay leaf and tomato paste. Mix well, bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer and cook uncovered until sauce thickens, about 20 minutes.

Beat eggs lightly in a large bowl. Squeeze excess water from spinach, chop and then mix well with 2/3 of the Parmesan, the mozzarella and ricotta cheese, breadcrumbs, nutmeg, garlic powder, reserved sausage and salt and pepper.

Fill cooked manicotti with cheese/sausage/spinach mixture. Ladle a portion of the sauce into a glass baking dish. Arrange stuffed manicotti on top of sauce, then cover with the rest of the sauce and top with remaining Parmesan cheese.

Bake covered in a 375 oven, approximately 45 minutes.