Pasta bake... It's baked pasta!
When we were first married we found a recipe for some sort of layer-lasagna-casserole-thingy. Well, it seemed like a lot of work for very little payoff. So we adapted it, and it became "Pasta Bake."
While a term like "Baked Ziti" sounds sexier, we started calling it "Pasta Bake" because it played well with several types of ingredients. Rotini, farfalle, campanelli, and, yes... ziti, all made wonderful Pasta Bakes. It works if you add things like mushrooms or pepperoni (put those on top). Or if you subtract stuff like spinach...
Stuff you will need:
1 lb. sweet Italian sausage (either ground or removed from casings)
2 cloves garlic (minced)
1 cup onion (minced)
1 Tbsp. Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp red pepper flake (optional)
1 can diced tomatoes (drained)
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
1 pkg. cream cheese
1/2 jar pasta sauce (use your favorite brand or homemade)
1 pkg frozen spinach, thawed and drained
1 pkg. noodles (we used ziti this time)
2 cups shredded mozzarella
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
In a large skillet over medium-high heat, brown Italian sausage. If there is a lot of liquid in the skillet after it browns, drain most of the liquid off, leaving sausage and 1 Tbsp of liquid in the skillet.
Add garlic and onions. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until fragrant. Then add Italian seasoning and red pepper flakes. Cook 1-2 minutes more then add tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, and cream cheese. Stir constantly until cream cheese is completely melted.
Pour skillet mixture in a bowl with spinach, pasta sauce, and noodles. Fold to thoroughly combine.
Spread evenly in a 9 x 13 and cover with the mozzarella. Bake until cheese has melted, high spots browned, and sides are bubbly (20-30 min.).
Diet info? Nah. This is cheat day business. Could be made using gluten free noodles. Or blanched and drained vegetables instead of noodles?
Eh. It is probably just better if you wait for a bad day or a cool day or any day, and make a big cheesy pile of Italian love.
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