Manicotti- the easy way

    The first time I ever had manicotti, I made it myself, so I really had no idea what it was supposed to look or taste like. I didn't have much experience cooking, so I was hoping it was going to be easy. All of the recipes I could find wanted me to cook the noodles, and then spoon- fill the floppy tubes with cheese, which sounded like a disaster waiting to happen. So, over the years, I have combined a bunch of different recipes, taking the easy technique from one, and adjusting the flavors to make a dish that everybody loves!

Ingredients:
1 package uncooked manicotti
15 oz ricotta
2 and 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella, separated
1/2 c parmesan cheese
1 t garlic powder
1 egg
2 t dried Italian seasonings, or 1 t oregano and 1 t basil
1 c water
1 jar spaghetti sauce

Directions:
    Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

    Mix the ricotta, 2 cups of the mozzarella, parmesan, garlic powder, egg, and herbs in a large bowl. When it's well mixed, put it in a zip-lock bag, and seal it. Then, cut one of the corners off the bag, and pipe the cheese mixture into the uncooked manicotti noodles, and place them in a 9x13 baking dish.

     Mix the water and spaghetti sauce together,  pour over the filled manacotti, and sprinkle the remaining 1/2 c of mozzarella on the top. 

     Cover, and bake the manicotti for 35-40 minutes. Remove the cover, and bake for
10 more minutes. Watch out, it's hot!