This easy cheesy pasta bake is loaded with meatballs, pasta sauce, rigatoni, and mozzarella cheese for an EASY dinner that will feed a crowd! Using just 7 simple ingredients you can make this meatball casserole quick and easy!
Spread about 1 cup of the sauce in the bottom of a large casserole dish. Dollop half of the ricotta on the bottom of the dish, lay half the meatballs, and sprinkle half of the parmesan cheese.
Mix the pasta with two cups of sauce. Pour the pasta mixture into the casserole dish. Top with the remaining ricotta cheese, meatballs, parmesan cheese, and mozzarella cheese.
Bake covered for 45-55 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the casserole is heated throughout.Optional- Remove the cover for the last 10 minutes to let the cheese brown around the edges.
Notes
Recipe Variations
If you love this recipe as much as we do and want some quick ways to change it up for variety, these little tips will do the trick!
Meatball Pasta Bake with Spinach– Prepare 16 ounces of frozen spinach by thawing and wringing out any extra liquid. Make recipe as directed adding the frozen spinach to the pasta and sauce mixture and layering in the casserole.
Vegetarian Pasta Bake– Make as directed omitting the meatballs from the recipe. Baking time will be reduced by 10-15 minutes. You can prepare just like this with no meat, or add additional veggies based on your preference. Veggies that work well are spinach, mushrooms, bell pepper, broccoli, zucchini, and onions. I recommend sautéing vegetables to tender before adding to the casserole.
Homemade Meatball Mozzarella Pasta Bake– Make this casserole as directed. Instead of using frozen meatballs, prepare a batch of these Italian Turkey Meatballs. Baking time will be reduced by 10-15 minutes.