Simply Traditional Lasagna

I must admit lasagna is a bit time consuming to make. First you have to make the meat sauce, then assemble the whole thing, then pop it in the oven ... but I find it is soooo much better than the store bought stuff. For this reason I am willing to have it less often, but make it from scratch.
 
I went on a search online and found the following new recipe for Simple Traditional Lasagna. I didn't follow the measurements exactly and I made a couple revisions but it tasted delicious. This one is definitely a keeper.
 

 
I completely blanked and forgot to snap a photo of a slice of lasagna. I mixed a package of de-thawed frozen spinach with the ricotta cheese.
 

 
 
 
The recipe is from allrecipes.com - Simple Traditional Lasagna, if you want to give it a try.
 
Simple Traditional Lasagna
 
Original Recipe Makes 8 servings

Ingredients:

** My revisions

1 pound ground beef

1 pound bulk Italian Sausage
1 ½ cup warm water **
1 cup sliced black olives **[I omitted these]
1 pinch basil
2 tsps garlic powder
1 tbsp dried oregano
1 ½ tsp dried sage
2 tsp dried black pepper
2 tbsp minced garlic
1 medium sized onion, chopped **
1 medium sized red or green pepper, chopped **
1 (300g) pkg of de-thawed frozen chopped spinach **
2 (14 ounce) jars Pasta Sauce
1 (16 ounce) pkg oven ready lasagna noodles **
8 Ounces Ricotta Cheese [** used a 300g tub]
454 g mozzarella cheese, shredded [** I used a bit more]
** I added a pinch of nutmeg to the meat sauce when cooking**

Directions

Brown the ground beef and Italian sausage in a large skillet with ½ cup of water over medium-high heat. Drain excess grease. Stir in the rest of the water and season with basil, garlic powder, oregano, sage, pepper, minced garlic, chopped onion, green or red pepper, and nutmeg. Simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in the pasta sauce, and remove from the heat.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

Mix the de-thawed chopped spinach with the ricotta cheese in a bowl and set aside.

Place a layer of the meat and sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Cover with a layer of dry noodles. Spread a thin layer of ricotta cheese and spinach mixture over the noodles, and sprinkle with a little mozzarella cheese. Cover with another layer of sauce, and repeat layering ending with the meat and sauce on top. Reserve about 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese for later.

Bake for 45 minutes in the preheated oven, but check after 30 minutes depending on how thick the lasagna is. Lasagna is cooked when you can easily stick a knife into it. Sprinkle the reserved cheese over the top, and return to the oven for about 10 minutes for a nice melted cheese topping.

 
I had some of the meat sauce left over so I threw it in the freezer to mix with a jar of pasta sauce for dinner another night. This week we had it with spaghetti. Dinner was delicious again.