Classic Pasta Bake
Warm, cozy, and the perfect casserole to kick off the fall season! And the best part, it is easy to double and freezes great.
We all know that in the Midwest, we love our casseroles. Some call it a casserole. Some call it a hotdish. Where I am from, we lean toward casserole. But no matter what you call it, I can guarantee that it will be a staple for your fall cooking. This Pasta Bake is full of flavor and so easy to make. We are not using any crazy ingredients. Most everything is the typical pantry staples.
Now, of course, you can substitute, change up the meat or cheese, make a side salad or garlic bread, but honestly, it is so good on its own, no side dish or alterations are required. I love to double the recipe and freeze one to pull out as the busy season commences.
So give it a try and let us know what you think! I have a feeling it is going to be a new addition to your warm and cozy meals!
Details & Tips
This pasta bake is what I always crave as soon as the we feel the first cool breeze of the fall season. Here in the Midwest, our summer has felt quite long. We have had some really hot weather in September which is not normal. So, of course, the first little feel of a cool breeze makes me want to pull out my crock and make a casserole of some sort. A pasta bake is always a family favorite so I had to kick off our warm and cozy meals with just that.
I have played around with a lot of variations of pasta bakes. I have added things like cream cheese, pepperoni, heavy cream, all kinds of cheese, and even tried a cheese sauce once. Now don’t get me wrong, all of those ingredients are welcome to any pasta bake. But what seems to always hit the spot is the classic, which is this one. It is a mix of tomatoes, herbs, sausage, hamburger, and noodles, mixed with A LOT of cheese. There are not a ton of steps. There are no unique ingredients. The flavors and even the process of making it will feel familiar and cozy. Pasta bakes are one of those recipes where you can truly make it your own. Clean out your cheese drawer. Add some pepperoni if you want. You cannot go wrong. And honestly, you cannot mess it up! One tip I love to point out is cooking your noodles about two minutes less than usual. Since we are baking this, we want the noodles to stay firm. We want them underdone when we put them in the pasta bake.
As if this recipe could not get any better, I have more good news! It freezes so well. Whenever I make it, I always double the recipe so I can make two at once, freezing one to have for the busy nights that are to come. I love doing this with all sorts of different casseroles. It is so nice to have a freezer full of homecooked meals.
Customize
You are always encouraged to make recipes your own! And pasta bakes feel like a blank canvas. Add in your favorite pepperoni, skip the sausage and just use hamburger.
Clean out that cheese drawer and use what you have on hand. Don’t overthink it! Do what sounds good to you and your family!
Freezing the Pasta Bake
As I mentioned, I love to have a pasta bake in the freezer. We are heading into the holiday season where meals are sometimes hard to make time for. So, when I make this for dinner, I double the recipe so I am able to put one in the freezer while we have one for dinner that night.
I double up the recipe. I use a large enameled cast iron crock to make the meat sauce mixture and double up my noodles. Once I am ready to put everything together, I start with the freezer dish. I like to freeze my casseroles in glass Pyrex dishes. I add half the noodles and half the meat sauce to the glass dish. I mix it together and set it aside. Then I add the rest of the noodles to the crock and continue putting everything together. Once that is in the oven, I finish the freezer dish by adding the cheese. I put it in the refrigerator until it is cooled completely, than throw in the freezer. It will stay good in the freezer for up to four months. To reheat, simply put it in the fridge the night before you want to make it, then bake it in the oven at 375 until bubbly and melty.