Lasagna

INGREDIENTS:

Sauce:
* Olive oil
* Lean ground beef
* 1/2 onion, diced, about 3/4 cup
* 1/2 large bell pepper (green, red, or yellow), stem and core removed, diced, about 3/4 cup
* 2 cloves garlic, minced
* Good quality tomato sauce
* 1 14-ounce can crushed tomatoes
* 2 Tbsp chopped fresh oregano or 2 teaspoons dried oregano
* 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley packed
* 1 Tbsp Italian Seasoning
* Pinch of garlic powder and/or garlic salt
* 1 Tbsp red or white wine vinegar
* 1 Tbsp to 1/4 cup sugar (to taste, optional)
* Salt
Lasagna:
* 1/2 lb dry lasagna noodles (requires 9 lasagna noodles – unbroken)
* 1 1/2 cups of Mozzarella cheese, grated or sliced

DIRECTIONS:

Put a large pot of salted water (1 Tbsp salt for every 2 quarts of water) on the stove on high heat. It can take a while for a large pot of water to come to a boil (this will be your pasta water), so prepare the sauce in the next steps while the water is heating.
In a large skillet heat 2 teaspoons of olive oil on medium high heat. Add the ground beef and cook it until it is lightly browned on all sides.Remove the beef with a spoon to a bowl. If there is more than a tablespoon of fat left in the pan (there shouldn’t be if you are using lean ground beef) remove it from the pan.Add the diced bell pepper and onions to skillet (in the photo we are using yellow bell pepper and red onions).
Cook for 4 to 5 minutes, until the onions are translucent and the peppers softened. Add the minced garlic and cook half a minute more.
Return the browned ground beef to the pan. Stir to combine, reduce the heat to low and cook for another 5 minutes.Transfer the beef pepper onion mixture to a medium sized (3 to 4 quart) pot. Add the crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce into the pot.
Add the parsley, oregano, and Italian seasonings, adjusting the amounts to taste. Sprinkle with garlic powder and/or garlic salt, to taste.Sprinkle with red or white wine vinegar. Stir in sugar, a tablespoon at a time, tasting after each addition, to taste. (The amount of sugar needed will vary, depending on how acidic the tomatoes are that you are using.)By now the salted water you started heating in step one should be boiling. Add the dry lasagna noodles and cook then per package directions (al dente). (Note noodles may be cooked in advance.)
Stir often to prevent from sticking. Make sure that water remains at a full rolling boil during the entire cooking to prevent noodles from sticking.
When ready, drain in a colander and rinse with cool water, gently separating any noodles that may be sticking together.
In a 13x9x2-inch casserole or lasagna dish, ladle a cup of sauce and spread it over the bottom of the dish. Arrange one layer of lasagna noodles lengthwise (about 3 long noodles, edge may overlap, depending on your pan) over the sauce. Ladle a third of the remaining sauce over the noodles.Sprinkle a layer of a third of the grated mozzarella on top of lasagna sauce(repeat these steps until dish is full).Bake at 200°C for 45 minutes. Allow to cool before serving.