So-Gal's Recipe: So-Easy Lasagna

I get really turned off from traditional lasagna for a couple of reasons. One, there is always way too much cottage cheese. Ew. I'm not a fan of feeling like I'm chowing down on cottage cheese with a little bit of noodles and sauce thrown in. And secondly, there's just, um, too much--too much stuff going on in my lasagna and too much lasagna.

So, I came up with my own recipe that has officially passed my taste test, my hubby's taste test, and my I-could-serve-this-at-a-dinner-party taste test. In short, it is seriously delicious. And it really does take no time at all to prepare. Double bonus!

You will need:

• Lasagna noodles
• 16 oz. of cottage cheese
• 1 lb. of lean ground beef
• 2 eggs
• 2 1/2 cups of any tomato sauce
• 2 1/2 cups of mozzarella cheese
• 9X9 dish
• Rosemary
• Salt and pepper
• Italian seasoning
• Dried parsley

1. Preheat oven to 350 and grease the bottom and sides of a 9X9 dish.
2. Brown meat in skillet. Add tomato sauce and let simmer for 5 minutes.
3. In a large bowl, mix together cottage cheese, eggs, 2 cups of mozzarella cheese, and sprinkle in all of your seasonings (as much or as little as you want).
4. Add approximately half of the meat to the bottom of the 9X9 dish. You will not be able to fully cover the bottom with meat. Don't worry. Then, arrange lasagna noodles over that. Next, spoon approximately half of the cheese mixture over the noodles. (Again, stop worrying. It doesn't have to be perfect--it will taste perfect.) Then, arrange noodles over the cheese mixture. On top of the noodles, spoon the rest of the cheese mixture. On top of the cheese mixture, add the rest of the meat sauce and sprinkle with 1/2 a cup of mozzarella cheese.

Diagram from top to bottom:

1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese
1/2 of the meat sauce
1/2 of the cheese mixture
Noodles
1/2 of the cheese mixture
Noodles
1/2 of the meat sauce

5. Cover dish with foil and bake at 350 for 35 minutes. Uncover, and bake for 15 minutes.