This Baked Rigatoni with Ricotta recipe combines mozzarella, Parmesan, and ricotta cheese for a hearty meat and pasta dish that the whole family will love. You can even make it ahead of time, freeze it, or enjoy leftovers the next day for dinner or lunch.
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It’s hard not to love a tasty combination of pasta, sausage, and yummy sauce! This winning Baked Rigatoni with Ricotta dish can either feed a crowd or provide delicious leftovers on a busy night (or when you just don’t feel like cooking).
Delicious Recipe for Baked Rigatoni With Ricotta
Of all the baked rigatoni recipes out there, this one stands out as an incredibly flavorful yet easy to prepare meal that you can make ahead of time. My girls even took this one in their school lunches the next day. Oh, how I love easy crowd-pleasing dinners! Just add a salad or green veggie and dinner is done.
Variations of Baked Rigatoni Recipes With Ricotta
You can definitely make this recipe your own based on your preferences, which is the great thing about this pasta dish. Instead of the ground beef, you could substitute ground turkey. Another fun idea would be using chopped mushrooms as the main “meat” ingredient.
If you’re omitting the Italian sausage, I would add in some extra spices such as oregano, red pepper flakes, or Italian seasoning. And if you want extra veggies, spinach is always a good choice!
Ingredients
- Whole-wheat rigatoni – Keep it real food approved with whole-wheat instead of refined pasta.
- Olive oil – I recommend finding an organic extra-virgin olive oil.
- Onion – Diced.
- Cloves Garlic – Peeled and Minced.
- Ground Beef – We recommend local, humanely raised meat or Butcher Box.
- Bulk Italian sausage – You can also use links with casings removed.
- Marinara sauce – Store-bought or use the Marinara Sauce recipe from my Fast & Fabulous Cookbook.
- Whole-milk ricotta – You can see what I look for in cheese and other dairy products here.
- Parmesan cheese – Freshly grated and divided.
- Basil – Fresh and chopped.
- Mozzarella – I recommend getting a block and shredding it yourself.
Common Questions for Baked Rigatoni Recipes
How to Store, Reheat, and Freeze Rigatoni Bake With Ricotta
Besides being delicious, I love that this recipe can be assembled ahead of time, which is especially helpful on those busy weekdays. If you freeze the casserole, do it before baking and thaw it in the fridge overnight before putting it in the oven. You will also need to increase the cooking time since it’ll be cold out of the fridge.
You can also freeze the cooked leftovers for later, too!
