Easy One Skillet Baked Pasta with Sausage and Ricotta
If baked ziti had a love child with lasagna, this sausage baked pasta would be it! Penne pasta is tossed in a sausage-laced tomato sauce with spinach, then is baked with dollops of creamy ricotta and mozzarella. It's bubbly and cheesy, and best of all, it's a cinch to make—the easy meal gets assembled and baked in a single skillet! It's one of our family favorites, and I hope you’ll love it too.
Servings: 6 people
Equipment
- 1 12-inch skillet
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 pound fresh Italian sausage (about 4 links), removed from the casings
- 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 5 ounces baby spinach
- 1 24- ounce jar marinara sauce
- 12 ounces penne pasta
- 1 cup fresh ricotta cheese
- 4 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese, divided, plus more for serving
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon coarsely chopped basil, plus more for serving
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450˚F (230˚C). Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
- Heat the olive oil in a 12-inch oven-proof skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sausage, breaking it up with a wooden spoon. Cook, stirring occasionally, until browned and cooked through, about 5 minutes. If the sausage has released a lot of fat, spoon off and discard all but about 1-2 tablespoons (you can skip this step if there’s not much fat in the pan).
- Add the garlic and let it sizzle for about 2-3 minutes (things will start smelling really good). Pile in the baby spinach and cook, stirring often, until wilted. Reduce the heat to low and carefully pour in the marinara sauce (take care, as it might splatter). Season the sauce with salt and pepper. Let it bubble for a few seconds, then remove the pan from the heat.
- Cook the pasta in the boiling water until just shy of al dente, then drain. Add the pasta to the sauce in the pan, along with ½ cup of water. Season with salt and pepper, and toss to combine.
- In a small bowl, stir together the ricotta, 2 tablespoons of the parmesan cheese, egg and basil. Season with salt and pepper.
- Dollop the ricotta in several places over the pasta. Sprinkle the mozzarella cheese and remaining 2 tablespoons of parmesan cheese over top. Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake until the cheese is melted and slightly toasted, about 10 minutes.
- Let the pasta cool for 5 minutes. Sprinkle with more parmesan and basil before serving.
Notes
Do ahead: You can assemble the sausage baked pasta up to 8 hours in advance. Let it cool, then add the ricotta and mozzarella cheeses. Cover the pan with aluminum foil and refrigerate. Bake the pasta covered for 10 minutes, then uncover it and bake until the cheese is golden in spots, about 5-10 minutes longer.
Storage: Refrigerate leftover baked pasta in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Tips:
- This sausage pasta bake gets assembled and baked in a 12-inch oven-proof skillet. You can use a cast iron, enameled cast iron or stainless steel skillet. If you don't have a large oven proof skillet, transfer the pasta to a large baking dish or casserole dish (greased) before adding the cheeses.
- If you have an egg allergy you can omit the egg from the ricotta mixture. The ricotta will seep into the sauce, but it will still taste delicious.
- You can use either mild sweet Italian sausage or hot Italian sausage in this recipe. For more spice, feel free to add a pinch of red pepper flakes.
- My favorite store-bought marinara sauce is Rao's, which is made with simple ingredients.
- If you're sensitive to garlic, you can add whole crushed cloves then remove them before adding the noodles, or you can omit it altogether.
- Try this vegetarian Creamy Baked Pasta!