Pasta Bake Recipes

ITALIAN BAKED PASTA

Steps:

• Cook pasta in generously salted water 3 minutes less than recommended on package. Drain.
• Meanwhile, heat oven to 350°F. Lightly spray 13x9-inch (3-quart) glass baking dish with cooking spray.
• Pour 2 cups of the marinara sauce into dish. Add half of cooked pasta; toss well. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Spoon half of the ricotta cheese in dollops over top. Sprinkle with 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers ending with mozzarella cheese. Cover lightly with foil, making sure foil is not resting on cheese.
• Bake 35 minutes. Uncover; bake 10 to 15 minutes longer or until center is bubbly and thoroughly heated. Cool 10 to 15 minutes before serving.

EASY ITALIAN PASTA BAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• Brown meat in large skillet; drain.
• Add cooked pasta, sauce, and half of the parmesan; mix well.
• Spoon into 13X9-inch baking dish.
• Top with mozzarella cheese and remaining parmesan.
• Bake 20 minutes or until heated through.

ITALIAN PASTA BAKE

Steps:

• In a large skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat until no longer pink. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Drain. Stir in spaghetti sauce, diced tomatoes, mushrooms and Italian seasoning. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, 20 minutes., Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350°. Cook pasta according to package directions; drain. Add to beef mixture and gently stir in sliced plum tomatoes. , Transfer to an ungreased 13x9-in. baking dish. Sprinkle with cheeses. Bake 25-30 minutes or until bubbly and heated through.

RIGATONI PASTA BAKE

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, stir and cook ground beef and onion over medium heat until browned and onions have softened. Drain any juices released.
• Add the Italian seasoning, garlic, salt and pepper and cook 1 minute.
• Add the pasta sauce and cook, stirring occasionally, over medium heat, for 5 minutes. Set aside.
• Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil over high heat. Add rigatoni, reduce heat to medium-high, and cook just until al dente (it will continue to cook slightly in the oven).
• Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water and drain pasta. Stir reserved pasta water into meat sauce.
• Combine pasta and pasta sauce in saucepan. Pour into a lightly greased 9x13" or similar baking dish.
• Cover with a lightly greased piece of foil and bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes or until heated through.
• **Optionally, cover and refrigerate up to 2 days. Bake at 350 degrees F until heated through, about 30-40 minutes.
• Uncover and sprinkle with cheese. Bake an additional 10 minutes, until cheese has started to brown.

PASTA BAKE RECIPE

Steps:

• Note: This recipe uses a lot of sauce, but the pasta absorbs a lot of it when it bakes. We don't want dry pasta.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Combine the Ricotta, Parmesan, egg, and 1 cup (not all) mozzarella cheese and set aside.
• Begin boiling the pasta water while you cook the meat for the sauce. Cook the pasta for 2 minutes less than al dente, then drain. (Be sure to time it exactly so that you don't end up with mushy pasta.)
• Cook and crumble the ground beef and diced onions over medium-high heat. Drain grease. Add garlic, red pepper flakes, salt/pepper, onion powder, and Italian seasoning. Cook for 1 minute.
• Add the marinara sauce. Stir to combine and heat through. Remove from heat.
• Combine the drained pasta with about ¾ of the sauce mixture and transfer it to a lightly greased 9 x 13 inch baking dish. Add dollops of the ricotta mixture over the top, then the rest of the meat sauce.
• Cover and bake for 20 minutes. Remove and top with remaining 1 ½ cups mozzarella cheese. Increase oven temp to 400 and bake uncovered for 10-15 more minutes, until the top begins to bubble and brown.
• Garnish with parsley and serve with garlic bread with cheese.

MACARONI PASTA BAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350° F. Lightly grease a 9x13-inch baking dish or other large rectangular baking dish.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to package directions for al dente. Be careful to not overcook the pasta. Reserve ½ cup of the pasta cooking water and then drain the pasta. Return the drained pasta to the pot.
• Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the onion and bell pepper to the pan and cook, stirring often, until the vegetables soften, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Add the ground beef to the pan. Crumble the beef and cook until it is browned.
• Pour the marinara sauce and reserved ½ cup of pasta cooking water into the skillet. Stir in the salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and reduce the heat to low. Simmer for about 10 minutes.
• Pour the meat and sauce mixture from the skillet into the pot with the pasta. Stir. Stir in the shredded cheddar cheese. Transfer the pasta mixture to the prepared casserole dish. Top with the mozzarella cheese.
• Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the casserole is hot and the cheese is lightly browned on top. Let stand for 5 minutes and then serve.

BAKED PASTA

Steps:

• In a Dutch oven or large frying pan, cook and stir ground beef until brown. Add garlic, tomato sauce, gravy, cream, Parmesan cheese, oregano and basil. Simmer for 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, cook pasta in a large pot of boiling water until al dente. Drain.
• Combine the cooked ziti and the sauce, and spread into a greased 9x13 baking dish. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.
• Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 20 to 30 minutes, until bubbly.

PASTA BAKE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted boil water to a boil. Cook mostaccioli pasta in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes, or until al dente. Drain well.
• Meanwhile, cook ground beef and chopped onions in a skillet over medium heat until browned.
• In a large bowl, mix together the mushrooms, spaghetti sauce, shredded mozzarella cheese, pasta, and browned ground beef and onion mixture. Transfer to a greased, 9x13 inch casserole dish.
• Bake at 325 degrees F (165 degrees C) for 20 minutes, or until very hot.