• Start by browning the ground beef in a 4.5-quart Dutch oven or larger. If using fresh minced raw onion, cook it along with the beef. When the beef is done, strain. If using dried minced onion, add it now. Stir and cook for about a minute.
• In the same Dutch oven, add the pasta sauce and the meat sauce seasonings (salt, pepper, basil, parsley, and Italian seasoning). Stir well and heat on low until the sauce starts to bubble. Turn off the heat, cover, and set aside.
• In a large bowl, combine the cottage cheese, ricotta, parmesan cheese, eggs, parsley, and salt. (You can swap out the ricotta for all cottage cheese.) Stir until everything is well incorporated. Set aside.
• Prepare your "filling station" by removing the lids and any divider papers that came with the mini loaf pans. Set out the 12 foil tins in two rows or whatever works for your kitchen.
• Start by layering each lasagna in this order: 1/4 cup of meat sauce, a half noodle, 1 to 2 tablespoons of shredded mozzarella, and 1/4 cup of cheese mixture. Repeat the layers a second time. You should have about a third of the meat sauce and shredded cheese left (the cheese mixture should be gone).
• Top each pan with remaining meat sauce, using up all you have left (should be about 1/4 cup to 1/3 cup each). Sprinkle the rest of the shredded mozzarella cheese as the final layer.

For Freezing & Baking

• Wrap each personal sized lasagna tightly in a layer of plastic wrap. Place each one in a freezer-safe quart-sized ziplock bag. Seal the bags, removing all of the air. Label with the baking directions and freeze.
• To cook frozen lasagnas, preheat oven to 350º Fahrenheit. Remove the lasagnas from the bag and the plastic wrap. Place the mini lasagnas on a baking sheet and bake from frozen for around 50 to 60 minutes or until the cheese is nice and bubbly.

For Immediate Baking

• If cooking the lasagnas immediately after assembling, preheat oven to 350º Fahrenheit. Place the lasagnas on a baking sheet and bake for around 25 to 30 minutes or until they are cooked through. (*See 2nd note below.)