Easy Cheesy Spaghetti Pie

Instructions

This dish is one that requires layering. We are building each layer one at a time, and then combining them together and baking it to set. 

1. Preheat your oven to 375° 
2. Grab a pie plate of your choice, a pasta pot, and a frying pan. 
3. In the pasta pot, bring water to a boil. Be sure to heavily (1/4 cup of salt)salt the water so it tastes of the ocean. 
4. Cook until al dente. Should be cooked but not mushy. About 6-8 minutes. Be sure to taste test until you get the texture you want. Once cooked, drain the pasta in a colander, but DO NOT RINSE. Place the drained pasta on some paper towel and try to remove as much as the water as possible gently patting with paper towel. Place the pasta in a medium sized bowl. Add the egg and freshly grated parmesan cheese and stir well to combine. Arrange the noodles in the bottom of a pie plate creating a slight well in the centre. Set aside.
5. Using a mesh strainer, combine your ricotta and cottage cheese and press all of the water out of them. Add the cheese to a medium bowl, add the nutmeg, basil, and spinach. Sprinkle a pinch of salt. Stir and spread over top of the noodles. Set aside.
6. In the frying pan over medium heat, add some olive oil and brown your sausage meat. You can can dice the sausage or remove the casing and brown it as you would hamburger meat breaking it up as you go. Once browned, remove from the pan into a small bowl and set aside.
7. In the sausage pan, add the diced onion. Cook over medium heat until translucent. Add the oregano, and tomato paste. Stir and brown for about a minute. Add the diced tomatoes and return the sausage to the pan. Cook for about 15 minutes until the sauce reduces. Add a Tbsp of balsamic vinegar to the sauce and stir. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Pour the sauce over the Ricotta and noodles and spread out evenly. 
8. Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 25 Minutes. 
9. Remove the pie, sprinkle the mozza cheese over top, and return to the oven until cheese is melted and browned. Approximately 5-8 minutes. 
10. Remove from oven and cut into pie slices, serve.