Quick Meatball and Pasta Bake

Most Sunday nights in my house are Pasta Night. Typically, we just thaw a batch of homemade tomato sauce from the freezer to mix in with the pasta, but I am all out of my tomato sauce at the moment! Cooking Light to the rescue!

This recipe from Cooking Light is really quick and easy — it takes about 30 minutes to make. I adapted the recipe a bit, but the general concept remained the same. For the original recipe, visit myrecipes.com.

Ingredients:

Cook the pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain in a colander over a bowl; reserve 1/2 cup cooking liquid.

While waiting for the pasta to cook, place panko, 1 tablespoon garlic, 1/4 teaspoon salt, black pepper, beef, sausage removed from the casing, and egg in a bowl, stirring just until combined.

Shape the mixture into 12 (1-inch) meatballs.

Heat a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil and swirl to coat.

Add the meatballs to the pan, cooking for 5 minutes, stirring to brown evenly.

Add remaining 1 tablespoon garlic and cook 30 seconds.

Add the reserved 1/2 cup cooking liquid, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, 3 tablespoons basil, crushed red pepper, and crushed tomatoes to the pan.

Stir to combine, reduce heat to medium; cover and simmer 15 minutes.

Preheat your broiler to high. Stir pasta into the tomato meatball mixture, spreading evenly in the pan. Sprinkle the cheese over top.

Add the pan to the oven and broil 1 minute or until cheese melts.

Sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon basil.

The pasta soaks up the sauce and the melted cheese makes for such a creamy, delicious dish. The bites of basil add a pop of freshness to each bite too! The meatballs were really simple to make, and were some of the best meatballs I’ve had in a while!

I loved how quickly this came together, even with making the meatballs! This will definitely go into my Sunday rotation, especially when I’m running low on my normal tomato sauce.

Print

Yum

Quick Meatball and Pasta Bake

Total Time: 40 minutes

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

• 8 ounces uncooked mini bow tie pasta (or ziti, rigatoni, etc.)
• ⅓ cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic, divided
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt, divided
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 8 ounces 90% lean ground sirloin
• 8 ounces sausage, removed from its casing
• 1 large egg
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ¼ cup chopped fresh basil, divided
• ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1 (28-ounce) can unsalted crushed tomatoes
• 2 ounces part-skim mozzarella cheese, shredded (about ½ cup)

Instructions

1. Cook the pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain in a colander over a bowl; reserve ½ cup cooking liquid.
2. While waiting for the pasta to cook, place panko, 1 tablespoon garlic, ¼ teaspoon salt, black pepper, beef, sausage removed from the casing, and egg in a bowl, stirring just until combined
3. Shape the mixture into 12 (1-inch) meatballs.
4. Heat a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil and swirl to coat.
5. Add the meatballs to the pan, cooking for 5 minutes, stirring to brown evenly.
6. Add remaining 1 tablespoon garlic and cook 30 seconds.
7. Add the reserved ½ cup cooking liquid, remaining ¼ teaspoon salt, 3 tablespoons basil, crushed red pepper, and crushed tomatoes to the pan.
8. Stir to combine, reduce heat to medium; cover and simmer 15 minutes.
9. Preheat your broiler to high. Stir pasta into the tomato meatball mixture, spreading evenly in the pan. Sprinkle the cheese over top.
10. Add the pan to the oven and broil 1 minute or until cheese melts.
11. Sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon basil.

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