Lasagna Casserole

In honor of my amazing friends who are running a half marathon tomorrow I am posting this carb laden joy.  As I said in my last post "There are not many things I like more than having a whole meal in one bowl."  


I love lasagna but I always think it takes way to long to put together.  For this casserole I just layered all the normal ingredients except for the noodles; I used curly noodles rather than the typical flat lasagna noodle.  The total time was about 1 hour including the 25 minute bake time.


I used homemade tomato sauce from this summer but you could use jarred sauce to make this even quicker.  My only recommendation is to add a bunch of fresh oregano to any sauce, your taste buds will love you.  

There are no exact measurements here, just be creative and your guaranteed to love your creation.


To begin:
** Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.


** Boil your pasta until al dente, it will cook more in the oven.


** Choose your fillings, I used:
sliced carrot
chopped onion, peppers and mushrooms
minced garlic
ground turkey


**Saute veggies adding garlic near the end.  When slightly soft add sauce and a bunch of fresh oregano, stir until warm and turn off heat.  If you use meat, brown it in a separate pan and add it to the sauce or just make it a layer at the end.


** Mix 2 cups ricotta cheese and 1 cup Parmesan cheese in a bowl.


** In a large dutch oven or glass dish layer noodles, sauce, and cheese mixture until full then top with 1 cup mozzarella cheese.

** Bake uncovered 25-30 minutes, or until cheese is melted and browned on top.

** Enjoy and then enjoy the next day because we all know it tastes better the next day.

I wish you enough!  And I wish the best to my strong friends for tomorrow, you will be great!!!!