baci's backing - Spasagna Florentine

When I lived in Northwest Ohio we would frequently head to Fort Wayne, Indiana to shop, eat or pretty much do anything that wasn't bowling or going to see a movie because that's about all there was to do in my small hometown. So I grew to know the restaurants in the Fort Wayne area pretty well and at the time (mind you, this was pre-2001 so I'm sure there are a billion other great choices in the area now) Cheddar's Casual Cafe was my absolute favorite place to go because of their Baked Spasagna and Strawberry Lemonade. I was obviously pretty easy to please as a high schooler :) Anyway, the Baked Spasagna would honestly haunt my dreams during my post high-school life, so I finally decided to get online and try to find out how to make it. Well, I was in luck! The recipe isn't quite as fabulous as Cheddar's original, but I'm sure it's a bit more healthy for you. . . minus a bit of grease :)

Here's how Cheddar's describes their Baked Spasagna so you can prepare yourself for the deliciousness:

Cheddar's original creation! We layer spaghetti with cheeses and our special blend of spices, bake until bubbly and then top with your choice of our homemade meat or marinara sauce.

Now for the recipe! If you notice that Cheddar's only serves their Spasagna with meat or marinara sauce, but my recipe says spaghetti or alfredo it's because back in the day those were your only two choices and I'm keeping it old school :)

Spasagna Florentine

2 (10 oz) packages of frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1 T. fresh parsley
2 cloves of garlic, pressed
2 lb. small curd cottage cheese
2 large eggs
¼ cup butter, softened
⅛ t. ground nutmeg
1 t. salt
¼ t. ground black pepper
8 oz. spaghetti, cooked and drained
1 lb. shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 jar of Spaghetti or Alfredo sauce

1) Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 13x9-inch baking pan.
2) Squeeze all excess moisture from spinach with your hands.

3) Combine spinach with parsley, garlic, cottage cheese, eggs, butter, nutmeg, salt and pepper.
4) Layer ⅓ of the noodles in the baking pan, ½ the spinach mixture and ⅓ of each cheese.

5) Repeat layering. On top, place last ⅓ of noodles and cheese.
6) Bake, uncovered, for 30-40 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

7) Let stand for 15 minutes before cutting. Serve with sauce on the side.