pasta al forno

my friend casha is a great cook. whenever we get together and it involves eating, casha has whipped up something delicious. on one occasion a few months ago it was pasta al forno, served with hearth bread, and a yummy salad. since then we have made this dish a few times. it works great with any vegetables that you have on hand.

1 lb Italian sausage (optional)
1 onion coarsely chopped
1 stalk celery finely chopped
1 carrot finely chopped
2 mushrooms finely chopped (we used zucchini and yellow squash this time. the more veggies the better)
3-5 cloves garlic minced
28 oz. crushed tomatoes
1 pt heavy cream
1 lb rigatoni pasta
mozzarella cheese
fresh or dried basil or other herbs

Brown sausage. Remove sausage, leaving pan drippings. (add some olive oil if you choose not to use sausage). Add carrots, celery, and mushrooms to pan and "sweat" cook for several minutes until tender. Add onion and garlic and saute for several minutes.

Add can of tomatoes, salt, pepper, and basil to taste. Add sausage back in simmer for 20 min

Cook pasta al dente. In large baking dish, put a tiny bit of sauce on bottom. Layer pasta, cream, cheese, then sauce. Add more cheese on top. Cover and bake 45 minutes at 350. Uncover and bake until cheese is bubbly. Add Parmesan at table.

Casha says, "I like to add more veggies because it helps the sauce to stretch a bit further. I do more carrots and celery, but any kind of veggies would be yummy. Enjoy!!"

So do enjoy this dish and make 2 while you are at it and toss one in the freezer for later.