J.W.'s Pepper and Mozzarella Casserole

This is a recipe my Dad, an 85 year old coal mining engineer, came up with. Obviously when he retired from coal mining he had way to much time on his hands, so Mom gave him an apron. The rest is history. If on a budget this recipe can be adjusted accordingly. Remember a little of this, a little of that. It will come out tasting great. Get creative. Dad was partial to fettuccini, but this goes great with just about anything.

• Preparation Time: 25 mins
• Cooking Time: 55 mins
• Total Time: 1 hr 20 mins
• Calories: 304 Calories

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 onions, thinly sliced
• 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
• 1 (28 ounce) can tomato sauce
• ¾ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 (8 ounce) can sliced mushrooms, drained
• 1 (12 ounce) package shredded mozzarella cheese
• 3 green bell peppers, thinly sliced
• 3 red bell peppers, thinly sliced

Recipe Instructions

Step 1

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Mix the tomato sauce, tomato paste, mushrooms, mozzarella cheese, and red pepper flakes together in a bowl.

Step 2

Heat the vegetable oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the green and red bell peppers, garlic, and onion; cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Drain and reserve the liquid from the vegetables; set aside.

Step 3

Spread about 1/3 of the tomato sauce mixture into the bottom of a casserole dish. Layer 1/2 of the vegetables on top, then repeat the layers, topping with the remaining 1/3 of sauce. Drizzle the reserved liquid from the vegetables on top.

Step 4

Bake in the preheated oven until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbly, about 45 minutes.