Easy Baked Pasta
There is nothing like the comforting, cheesy goodness of a baked pasta dish. This Easy Baked Pasta recipe comes together with little effort and is ready to eat in under an hour. Protein packed thanks to cottage cheese and lots of spinach--this will be a family favorite dinner!
Servings: 8
Ingredients
- 16 oz. rotini pasta
- 10 oz. frozen spinach, thawed and excess water squeezed out
- 1 24 oz. jar of your favorite marinara
- 1 large egg
- 2 c cottage cheese
- 1 ½ c shredded mozzarella
- ½ c grated parmesan
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning
- ¼-½ tsp crushed red pepper
- ½ tsp cracked pepper
- ½ tsp sea salt
- Fresh parsley or basil optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Cook pasta to al dente according to package. Drain and transfer to medium bowl.
- In another bowl, combine, egg, cottage cheese, parmesan, 1 cup mozzarella, garlic and spices. Stir Well. Add in spinach and stir to combine.
- Add pasta into cheese and spinach mixture and stir well to combine.
- Lightly spray a 9x13in. baking pan with oil and then spread about half the marinara sauce to cover the bottom of the pan in an even layer. Pour pasta mixture over marinara and spread evenly.
- Pour remaining marinara over the pasta and spread evenly. (If you are not baking right away, cover the pan and refrigerate at this point)
- If baking, place into oven and bake for 30-35 minutes until slightly bubbling.
- Sprinkle remaining mozzarella over top to cover and bake for 10 more minutes or until cheese is completely melted and starting to become golden brown.
- Allow to cool for about 5-10 minutes before serving. Sprinkle freshly chopped parsley or basil over to garnish for serving. Store leftovers in the refrigerator of freeze.
Notes
- I used to always add mushrooms to this recipe as well however, to make this even easier, I cut them out because when I said easy, I meant easy. No cutting or chopping in this recipe unless you want to toss in some more mushrooms.
- Make this and get it all set up the day before you need to bake. I think it is even better after sitting for a day and allowing the flavors to soak in.
- We always serve this with some extra sauce--we are sauce people 100%.
Nutrition
Calories: 417kcal | Carbohydrates: 52g | Protein: 24g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 51mg | Sodium: 1048mg | Potassium: 625mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 4841IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 295mg | Iron: 3mg