1 box manicotti noodles (cooked al dente)
Mix cottage and ricotta cheese together. Whip. Add spices. Add 1/2 the mozzarella and parmesan cheese. Mix well. Stuff noodles with mix. Place side by side in a baking dish sprayed with cooking spray. You can cover these with canned sauce or the sauce recipe that follows. Pour sauce over noodles. Top with remaining cheese and bake in a preheated 375° oven until bubbly.
Sauce for Manicotti
1 lb. VERY lean ground beef
Brown beef with onions and peppers. Drain well and rinse with hot water. Add all other ingredients and simmer until thick. Mushrooms, fresh or canned, may be added. (Remove bay leaf before pouring over manicotti.)
1 container fat free ricotta cheese
1 small container fat free cottage cheese
1 pkg. fat free mozzarella cheese
1 pkg. grated parmesan cheese
1 Tbsp. parsley flakes
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 onion (diced)
1 bell pepper (diced)
1 can Hunt's diced tomatoes
1 can tomato paste
1/2 tsp. each of: garlic powder, oregano, thyme, and basil
salt and pepper to taste
1 bay leaf
These have come so that your faith---of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire---may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. 1 Peter 1:7