Spinach-Sausage Manicotti

This recipe is based on one from Cooking Light. What originally appealed to me about it is that you stuff the manicotti right out of the package. That's right, no stuffing limp noodles! Usually I make this without meat, but I had a couple of links of Italian turkey sausage in the freezer, so I threw that in. Andy really liked the addition. He commented that it took away some of the spinach flavor.:) If your family doesn't like leafy greens, you could replace all of it with sausage and/or ground beef. The other great thing about this recipe is that it only takes about 15 minutes to prep. All the work is done by the oven during the one-hour baking time. It costs about $2.50 per serving.

Spinach-Sausage Manicotti
2 links Italian turkey sausage, casings removed
1 (9-oz.) package frozen spinach, thawed and well-drained
1 (15-oz.) container ricotta cheese
1 (8-oz.) package shredded Italian-blend cheese, divided
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 egg
1 box manicotti shells
1 (26-oz.) jar pasta sauce

1. Cook sausage in a skillet until meat crumbles and is done. Combine sausage, spinach, and ricotta. Stir in half of shredded cheese and next 6 ingredients. Use your hands to stuff manicotti shells with spinach mixture. Arrange manicotti in a 13- x 9-inch baking dish.
2. Pour pasta sauce over manicotti. Fill the jar half full with water; shake to incorporate remaining pasta sauce in jar. Pour water mixture into baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining half of shredded cheese. Cover dish tightly with aluminum foil.
3. Bake at 375° for 1 hour.