Baked Mostaccioli Recipe
This is a super easy casserole the whole family can enjoy with mostaccioli pasta (penne lisce) and meat sauce, all covered in a blanket of delicious Italian cheeses and baked to perfection.
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 40
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 8
- Category: pasta
- Method: stove top and bake
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- 1 lb box (16 ounces) mostaccioli
- 1 lb bulk Italian sausage
- 1 large green pepper seeded, veined and chopped
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 4–5 cups marinara sauce or tomato sauce
- 1 1/2 cups provel ropes or provolone shredded
- 1 1/2 cups mozzarella shredded
- 1/2 cup parmesan
- Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the mostaccioli noodles al dente according to package instructions and drain well.
- Brown sausage in a skillet on medium heat. Remove sausage to plate; cover and keep warm.
- Add peppers and onions to the same skillet over medium-high heat. Cook for 3-5 minutes or until the edges of the onions start to brown. Add garlic and cook for 1 additional minute. Remove from heat.
- Combine the cooked sausage mixture, cooked mostaccioli, and marinara in a large baking dish sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Season with kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste. Sprinkle with provel, mozzarella, and parmesan.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until cheese is melted and started to brown just a touch. If desired garnish with chopped fresh parsley.
Notes
- Cook the mostaccioli al dente, which means still somewhat firm. As it will be baked for a bit with the sausage, veggies, and sauce. You don’t want to overcook it.
- Other types of pasta to use include penne, ziti, or rigatoni.
- Use good quality Italian sausage. Most butcher shops make their own, and it tastes so much better than processed sausage with all the preservatives in it.
- Ground beef, ground turkey, or ground pork can be substituted for the sausage.
- Chop the green pepper and onion fairly fine, so you get a little bit of each in almost every bite.
- Use a high quality tasty marinara. They really have come a long way with jarred marinara. Some of them taste pretty darn good and do not have any preservatives in them.
- Grate and shred your cheese fresh from the block. That way, you will not have preservatives, added enzymes, and cellulose.
- For a change of pace, try adding fresh, cooked, chopped spinach, mushrooms, zucchini, or ricotta cheese.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave at reduced power.
- To freeze cool completely and cover with two layers of plastic. Place in the freezer on a level surface for up to 2 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight and reheat in the microwave.
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Find it online: https://www.smalltownwoman.com/baked-mostaccioli/