Preheat oven to 350℉.
Cook the Pasta: Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add a tablespoon of salt and stir to combine.
Add the noodles to the boiling water and cook until al dente (still have a firm bite). Drain the noodles, add back into the pot and set aside.
Prepare Sauce: In a large skillet cook the sausage over medium heat, breaking it up while it cooks. When the meat is mostly browned add the onion and cook until the meat is fully browned and the onion is softened and translucent.
Add the garlic to the meat mixture and cook an additional 30 seconds.
Pour in the marinara sauce, basil, salt and pepper. Stir to combine. Bring to a simmer.
Coat Noodles: Spoon about 1 cup of sauce into the noodles to coat.
Prepare Cheese Mixture: in a medium size bowl combine the ricotta, mozarella, parmesan, and black pepper
Prepare Dish: In a 9x13 baking dish spread a layer of sauce over the bottom of the dish.
Layer in half of the pasta mixture. Spoon half of the cheese mixture on top of the noodles
Spoon half of the red sauce over the noodles and cheese.
Continue layering with the remaining halves of the noodles, cheese and sauce.
Top the dish with 1 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese.
Cover with foil, tenting to ensure the foil isn’t stuck to the cheese as it melts.
Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake an additional 10 minutes, or broil for 5 minutes. Until top layer of cheese is nicely browned and bubbling.
Top with fresh parsley (or basil) and fresh grated parmesan if desired.