1 lb. Italian sweet sausage links
1 lb. ground beef
1 med. onion, chopped
2 (16 oz.) cans tomato puree
1 (6 oz.) can tomato paste
1 3/4 tsp. basil
Salt
1 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 (8 oz.) pkg. manicotti shells (16 shells), cooked
2 (15 or 16 oz.) containers Ricotta or cottage cheese (4 c.)
1 (8 oz.) pkg. Mozzarella cheese, diced
2 tbsp. chopped parsley
Grated cheese

About 2 1/2 hours before serving:

1. In covered Dutch oven over medium heat, in 1/4 cup water, cook sausage links 5 minutes. Uncover; brown sausage links well; drain on paper towels.

2. Spoon fat from Dutch oven; over medium heat brown ground beef and onion well. Stir in tomato puree, tomato paste, 1 teaspoon basil, 1 teaspoon salt, sugar, pepper, and 1 cup water; simmer, covered, 45 minutes. Cut sausage into bite size pieces; add to mixture. Cook 15 minutes; stir occasionally.

3. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In large bowl, combine Ricotta and Mozzarella cheeses, parsley, 3/4 teaspoon basil, and 1/2 teaspoon salt; stuff in cooked shells.

4. Spoon half of meat sauce into 1 (13 x 9 inch) or 2 (9 x 9 inch) baking dish or dishes. Arrange half of stuffed shells over sauce in 1 layer. Spoon remaining sauce, except 3/4 cup, over shells; top with remaining shells in 1 layer. Spoon reserved meat sauce over top. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake 30 minutes or until hot. Makes 8 servings.

To freeze and serve up to 1 month later: Using freezer-proof - oven-proof baking dish or dishes. Prepare steps 1-4; wrap and freeze. To serve, preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake, covered, for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake 15 minutes or until completely hot.