Marian's Spaghetti Casserole

Ingredients

• 1 lb spaghetti, very thin or angel hair
• 1 lb lean ground beef or ground turkey or soy crumbles
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 1 green pepper or red pepper or orange bell pepper, chopped
• 2 large onions, chopped
• 8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, pressed or minced
• 2 (28 ounce) cans whole tomatoes
• 10 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, sliced

Directions

1. 1

   Prepare spaghetti according to package directions, then rinse under cold water.

2. 2

   In large skillet, brown meat (if using meat replacement you can add it later).

3. 3

   Add pepper, onions, mushrooms, and garlic to skillet. Saute until onions are transparent.

4. 4

   Slice tomatoes and add them to skillet. Don't be tempted to use canned diced tomatoes; they just don't stand up as well to baking and leftovers in this recipe. Reserve the liquid.

5. 5

   Spray large casserole dish with oil spray.

6. 6

   Place one-third of spaghetti in bottom of dish. Top with one-third of meat-veggie mixture and one-third of sharp cheese.

7. 7

   Repeat layers twice.

8. 8

   Pour reserved canned-tomatoes liquid over last layer.

9. 9

   Bake in 350 F oven until bubbly, usually about an hour, but longer if you've assembled the casserole and refrigerated it before baking.