Venison Recipe: Sausage and Three-Cheese Lasagne

• This post is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group™ and Barilla, but all my opinions are my own. #pmedia #JoytotheTable  http://cmp.ly/3/8vNxcO

So if you’ve read my blog for long, you probably know that I live in America’s fourth largest city. What you may not know is that I grew up in a teensy-tiny town with a population smaller than my current neighborhood! My dad has brought home fresh venison for as long as I can remember, and I happened to marry a man, and give birth to a son, who both do the same! So far this year, we have four deer and one aoudad in the freezer. Therefore, I’m always on the lookout for a good, original venison recipe!

My two hunters.

I love having a constant supply of hormone-free, antibiotic free, 100% organic meat on hand, and I love coming up with creative ways to cook with it. My daughter Allison and I (my constant cooking companion) headed to Randall’s to get ingredients for an easy-yet delicious- weeknight meal. I was so excited to be able to try Barilla lasagne and pasta sauce to create this Venison Sausage and Three-Cheese Lasagne.

First, gather your ingredients. I put all of mine in this casserole dish for the photo, but it was so nice to have everything together when I went to work! Here’s what you need:

1.5 pounds ground sausage- venison if you have it!

one pound cottage cheese

1.5 cups Parmesan, plus more for garnish if desired

1 tsp. thyme

1 tsp. Italian seasoning

1.5 tsp. Kosher salt

one pound mozzarella cheese

one box Barilla oven-ready lasagne noodles

two jars Barilla pasta sauce, any flavor

1 cup half and half

1 Tbs. fresh rosemary

1/2 cup Panko bread crumbs

First, preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

Brown your sausage, breaking up with a spatula. We like ours a little on the crispy side, but if you don’t, remember it will cook more in the oven as well.

Next, put the Barilla pasta sauce, half-and-half, 1/2 tsp. salt, and rosemary into a blender. Blend until smooth.

Next, combine the cottage cheese, Parmesan cheese, tsp. of salt, Italian seasoning, and thyme.

(You can also use ricotta instead of cottage cheese, or a combination of the two.)

Then, set to work layering!

Spread a thin layer of the sauce in the bottom of the casserole dish to prevent sticking. Add a layer of Barilla oven-ready lasagne noodles. (Hurray for no pre-boiling!) You may have to break apart some pieces to fit the dish.

Add 1/3 of the meat, then 1/3 of the cottage cheese mixture, then 1/3 of the mozzarella.

Repeat until all ingredients have been used, ending with mozzarella.

Cover tightly with foil and bake at 375 for 25 minutes. Remove from oven, sprinkle with Panko breadcrumbs. Return to oven and broil (uncovered) for approximately 3 more minutes until crumbs and cheese are browned. (Watch for burning!)

Enjoy! This is sure to be a new family favorite, especially if your family is a fan of cheese like mine. If one kind of cheese is good, three kinds is better, right?

When you head to Randall’s to buy your Barilla pasta and sauce, be sure to look for the in-store promotion:
$1 off the purchase of ONE (1) box of Barilla® Lasagne and ONE (1) Barilla® Sauce.

You can also follow Barilla on Facebook to find more recipes and promotions!

If you like this post, be sure to check out my other 12 Days of Christmas Party Food posts!