Stuffed Manicotti

by Cathie Frausto
(Pueblo, CO United States)

We have made this recipe for many many years. I'm not sure where my mom got it but we had made it so often I rarely use a recipe.

When I was in college my sister and I decided to make it for my parents and other siblings who had gone somewhere. We gathered all the ingredients and started making the manicotti.

I put the hamburger in a bowl and started to add the cheese and mix it together when we realized we were supposed to cook the hamburger first! We spend a lot of time trying to take the cheese out of the hamburger so we could fry it and then rinsing off the cheese.

My sister ended up driving to the store for more cheese. Well we got the meat fried and the manicotti made It had a bit of a smokey flavor as we didn't get all the cheese and it got fried with the hamburger.

I still make this recipe for my family and I'm a grandma now, teaching the recipe to my grandchildren.

INGREDIENTS

1 box Manicotti Pasta

Spaghetti Sauce (Homemade or your favorite brand name)

1 lb lean ground beef

2 8oz bags of mozzerella or Italian blend cheese

4 bread slices turned into bread crumbs

1 egg

1 tsp. oregano

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1 small onion chopped

PREPARATION

Cook Manicotti to taste.

Fry hamburger, cutting it up as it cooks, drain and let cool.

When cool add hamburger with the rest of the ingredients (leave some of the cheese to sprinkle over top of manicotti, about half a bag) except the spaghetti sauce.

Put a ladle or two of sauce to cover the bottom of a cake pan.

Stuff cooked manicotti with the hamburger mixture and place into pan.

Cover with sauce.

Cover with foil and bake about 45 minutes.

Remove foil and sprinkle cheese over the top of the manicotti.

Bake for an additional 8-10 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and melted.

Let set for a couple of minutes before serving.

Note Correction
Every thing but the pasta and the sauce are mixed together with the cooked lean ground beef. Bake at 350F