The Lady and Sons Lasagna

• 2  cup  canned, diced tomatoes
• 2  cup  tomato sauce
• 1  cup  water
• 1/2  cup  onions, diced
• 1/2  cup  green bell peppers, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, diced
• 1/4  cup  fresh parsley leaves, chopped
• 1 1/2  teaspoon  Paula Deen's Sweet Italian Herb Blend
• 1 1/2  teaspoon  Paula Deen's House Seasoning
• 1 1/2  teaspoon  Paula Deen's Seasoned Salt
• 1 1/2  teaspoon  sugar
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 1/2  lb  ground beef
• 6 to 9 Long strips lasagna noodles
• 12  ounce  cottage cheese, mixed with 1 beaten egg and 1/2 cup Parmesan
• 1  cup  Gruyere cheese, grated
• 1  cup  Swiss cheese, grated
• 2  cup  cheddar, grated
• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese
• 1  cup  mozzarella, grated

To make the sauce, combine the tomatoes, tomato sauce, water, onions, peppers, garlic, parsley, seasoning mixtures, sugar and bay leaves in a stockpot. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 1 hour. Crumble the ground beef in a saucepan. Cook until no pink remains, then drain off the fat. Add the ground beef to the stockpot. Simmer for another 20 minutes. While the sauce simmers, cook the pasta according to the package directions. (If sauce is too thin, for your taste, you can thicken it up at this time by mixing 1 tablespoon of cornstarch and a 1/4 of a cup of cold water. Bring sauce back to a boil. Stir in cornstarch mixture, stirring constantly.) Remove bay leaves.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

To assemble lasagna, place a thin layer of sauce in the bottom of a 9 by 13 by 2-inch pan. Layer 1/3 of each, noodles, cottage cheese mixture, Gruyere, Swiss and cheddar cheeses. Pinch off small pieces of cream cheese and dot over other cheeses. Add another layer of sauce. Repeat layering 2 to 3 times, ending with sauce. This may be covered and refrigerated. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and top with mozzarella and continue to bake for another 10 to 15 minutes. Note: If lasagna has been refrigerated, bake for 40 minutes total.

Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours 20 minutes
Difficulty: Easy
Yield: 8-10 servings

Recipe courtesy Paula Deen

Show: Paula's Party

Episode: Fair Food