My Italian Dinner

I call it ziti - my brother says it is not.

I cooked tonight. I made a dish I created on my own. Amy said it was the best batch I have ever made. I've done it about 8-10 times, including a double batch that was sent in to Amy's workplace for a potluck they had one time.

Michael's Not-ziti

Ingredients
1 pound of ground beef
1 jar of Ragu - you pick your variety, I like the chunky mushroom version.
1 box of rigatoni/ziti pasta
1 12oz pack of shredded mozerella
1 container (15-16oz) ricotta
1 pack (usually 5 pieces) fresh italian sausage (mild or hot) from the meat dept.

Procedure
brown the ground beef, pour off the grease and add the Ragu - simmer until needed
boil the pasta as described on the box
prepare the sausage as described
mix 3/4 of the mozerella with the ricotta in a bowl

when the sausage is ready, slice it into pieces about 1/4-1/2 inch thick (coin style) and set aside
coat the bottom of the casserole dish with a thin layer of the meat sauce
make the next layer using all of the sausage
make the next layer using the pasta
spread the cheese blend evenly over the layer of pasta
add the remaining sauce, covering all of the cheese and pasta
spread the remaining mozerella over the top of the dish and place in the oven

bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes

serve and enjoy - we like a little parmesean sprinkled on top