What family isn’t big on Italian food, especially when it’s the hearty, comfort kind? My sister in law has a never ending love affair with Italy, hence, the reason my cupboard is well filled with goodies from the pasta capital of the world. Here is a simple recipe your whole family will love and one that is always a hit at potlucks. I used our local tomato sauce, in this version of mine. Do let me know if you ever get to try it out.

Pasta Al Forno Recipe

INGREDIENTS

2 tbsps. olive oil
1 kilo lean ground beef (i use S&R’s australian ground)
1 whole white onion (large), chopped
1 head garlic, slivered
2 fresh plum tomatoes, diced
large pasta, eg. ziti, penne, conchiglie or a combination (make enough to keep a ratio of a little bit more sauce than pasta)
salt & pepper
Del Monte italian style tomato sauce
3 kinds of cheese (cottage, mozzarella and medium sharp cheddar)

PROCEDURE

sautè onions and garlic in olive oil, till golden
add tomatoes and sauté some more till wilted
add ground beef and cook through till browned on all sides and there are no more red parts (make sure to break up ground beef to have a smooth consistency and not lumpy meat)
season with salt and pepper till nice and tasty, I always use sea salt in everything I cook.
add in 1 big packet of the tomato sauce and simmer gently for a few minutes before mixing
adjust seasonings if necessary
while all this is happening, make sure you boil your pasta in a separate pot of water with some vegetable oil, salt and cook till al dente; do not overcook as you still have some finishing up in the oven.

ASSEMBLY

when noodles have been drained, immediately pour it into an oven resistant pyrex
pour the sauce over the noodles and gently spread
then put the cottage cheese evenly around the top, alternately sprinkle with mozzarella and cheddar cheese
make sure you drain the cottage cheese before spreading and that you distribute all cheeses very well around the top of this dish, so that it melts evenly in the oven
bake in a pre heated oven at 350 degrees till the top is golden brown and the sides are bubbling!