Oh Lasgana! Who doesn't love lasagna?! It has been my favorite meal for most of my life. This dish daunted me for years until my husband bossed lovingly coached me through it. It is so much easier than I thought! My favorite part is flavoring the sauce using different ingredients.

You will need: 

• 1 pkg lasagna noodles white or whole wheat
• olive oil
• 1 large onion
• 1 large pepper
• 2 cups chopped mushrooms
• 1.5 lbs ground beef
• 2 cups ricotta cheese
• 6 cups spaghetti sauce (equal to one large plastic jar or 2 large cans)
• 3 cups mozzarella cheese
• 3/4 cups parmesan cheese

The first thing to do is set the oven for 400F. Get a huge pot of water boiling, and add a tbsp of olive oil. This will stop your noodles from sticking to each other. Cook a whole box of lasagna noodles, it's usually a 1 lb package.  Once the noodles are cooked, remove from hot water, strain and rinse with cold water until they are no longer hot. Set aside.

While the water boils and your noodles are cooking chop onion, peppers, mushrooms and lightly sautee until soft. Set aside. Toss ground beef in frying pan, and cook well. Add sauteed veggies back into meat and add ricotta cheese. Mix thoroughly. Then, add in the tomato sauce too.

Now Grate 3 cups of mozzarella cheese. I also like to add 3/4 cups of parmesan and mix the two together. I like to oil my pan so the noodles don't stick. I use either a roasting pan or a large rectangular casserole dish (10x13 inches). 

 The first layer will be noodles, let them touch, to cover the entire bottom of baking dish. If you have broken noodles use them in the bottom layer. When you are cutting it up, no one will say anything ever notice. Next lay out the tomato sauce mixture to cover the noodles fully. Spread 1/3 of the cheese over the sauce. Repeat another layer of noodles, completely covering the cheese. Next lay out the sauce, and follow with cheese again. Close it up with one last layer of noodles. This time spread the remaining cheese over top. Bake for 30 - 40 minutes, watching for bubbling and golden brown cheese.

Now a word about the ingredients. This recipe is just the basic. Here are some alternative options:

•  Vegetarian: Substitute ground round or a soy replacement for the the ground beef. Soy cheese is also available.
• Add zucchini, spinach and feta cheese for a Greek flavor.
• Add fresh basil and fresh chunks of tomato for Lasagna Marguerite.