Sausage Florentine Bake

Total Time: 1 hr 40 mins Preparation Time: 1 hr Cook Time: 40 mins

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 lbs bulk italian sausage
• 2 (28 ounce) cans crushed tomatoes
• 1 bay leaf
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 4 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated (divided)
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 2 (10 ounce) packages frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained
• 1 (12 ounce) package wide egg noodles, cooked and drained
• 4 green onions, sliced
• 4 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded

Recipe

• 1 in a large saucepan or dutch oven, cook sausage until no longer pink; drain.
• 2 add tomatoes, bay leaf, garlic, sugar, basil, oregano, salt and pepper. bring to a boil.
• 3 reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
• 4 meanwhile, in a separate bowl combine eggs, 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, and nutmeg. stir in spinach, cooked noodles, and onions.
• 5 discard bay leaf from sausage mixture.
• 6 in each of two greased 9-in square baking pans, layer a fourth of the noodles and a fourth of the sausage mixture. top each with 1 cup mozzarella cheese.
• 7 repeat layers.
• 8 top with remaining parmesan cheese.
• 9 bake, uncovered, at 350 for 30 minutes or unil bubbly.
• 10 let stand for 10 minutes before serving.
• 11 note: casseroles may be frozen before baking; thaw in the refrigerator overnight and bake at 350 for 1 hour.