Cheesy Easy Cavatini * Venison Optional

Total Time: 55 mins Preparation Time: 25 mins Cook Time: 30 mins

Ingredients

• 2 cups shell pasta, cooked & drained
• 2 cups rotini pasta, cooked & drained
• 1 lb ground venison or 1 lb ground beef
• 1/2 lb ground lamb or 1/2 lb bulk sausage
• 1 tablespoon mixed italian herbs (basil, oregano, parsley for starters)
• 1 (28 ounce) can spaghetti sauce (or 1 quart home-made)
• 3 1/2 ounces pepperoni, chopped
• 1 (4 ounce) can mushrooms, stem & pieces drained
• 1 (4 ounce) can green chili peppers (optional)
• 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Recipe

• 1 boil pasta according to package instructions, drain and pour into 13x9 pan.
• 2 while pasta is cooking, brown the meats; sprinkle with herbs, mixing well. remove from heat.
• 3 mix spaghetti sauce (i use half home-made canned sauce and half from a store-can) with meat; add mushrooms and peppers; pour over pasta in pan.
• 4 sprinkle on the grated cheeses.
• 5 cover with foil or lid; bake for 30 minutes; remove foil and bake for 10-15 minutes more (crusty and bubbly).
• 6 variation: add sliced black olives.
• 7 variation #2: use leftover spaghetti-meat sauce.
• 8 variation #3: leave out the ground meats and only use pepperoni -- completely different taste to it!