I love me a good Italian dish. Then you put it in bake form and I am essentially in heaven. I hope you enjoy this Italian vegetarian pasta bake as much as my family did!
True confession: This recipe wasn’t supposed to be vegetarian. I browned this fantastic ground Italian venison that my family makes and had it all set on the table. It smelled amazing and I was excited. You see, I had this delightful combination of vegetables simmering and well…I think I got too excited. After I finished layering the vegetables, pasta, and cheese, sprinkling some last bit of mozzarella and some basil and oregano. I marveled at the layers and their beauty. Then I saw it. The bowl of browned venison! How could I forget?! Oh, I forget a lot, so I don’t know why I am so surprised 😀 I looked at my husband and he said, “I don’t need a protein with my Italian and you don’t want to take that apart!” So in the oven it went, and by golly, it was amazing, meatless and all.
It oozes with cheese and has tons of fresh vegetables. My son doesn’t love zucchini, so I knew if I did zoodles or shaved them to replace lasagna noodles, I would have a complainer on my hands. He would eat it, but it wouldn’t be a fun dinner at our house, and I am not a short order cook (no special meals for kids around these parts!). However, I thought I could sneak them in by dicing them up, and he didn’t say a word as he gobbled it up! Give it a try!
Your ingredients for your Italian Pasta Bake
- 12 ounces tri-color rotini (or other noodle of your choice!)
- 1/2 cup chopped green pepper
- 1 cup chopped green zucchini
- 1 cup chopped yellow zucchini
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 1 cup chopped mushrooms
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1/2 tablespoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 15 ounce cans of diced tomatoes, salt free
- 1 15 ounce can of tomato sauce
- 15 ounces ricotta
- 3 cups mozzarella, divided
- 3/4 cup shredded parmesan, divided
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Your Steps
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bring a kettle of water to boil and cook rotini to al dentè. Drain and set aside. Cook Heat olive oil in a large sauce pan (I actually just used my pasta kettle!) over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon minced garlic, green pepper, and onion. Sauté for 4-5 minutes, until just tender. Add salt, red pepper flakes, basil, oregano, zucchini, and mushrooms. Cook for an additional 5 minutes. Stir in diced tomatoes and tomato sauce, allowing to simmer while you mix the cheese mixture.
Speaking of the cheese mixture, is it even Italian if it doesn’t have cheese?! This recipe is creamy and cheesy in all the right ways, but if cheese doesn’t speak to your soul like it does to a Wisconsinite, feel free to cut this down just a touch. In a separate bowl, mix ricotta, 1 cup of the mozzarella, 1/2 cup of shredded parmesan, egg, 1 teaspoon of minced garlic and pepper.
Now to build your Italian Vegetarian Pasta bake!
Layer approximately 2 cups of the vegetable mixture on the bottom of a pyrex pan. Add approximately 1/3 of the noodles and then 1/3 of the cheese mixture. Continue layering until two more times, but end with the vegetable mixture. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and parmesan. Add a little basil and oregano if you’re feeling fancy. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the mixture is heated through. I love my cheese browned on top, so I turn on the broiler at 500 degrees and cook for 1-3 minutes more, watching VERY closely. The broiler is AMAZING, but you can go from perfection to burned in a snap!
I loved that this bake stays saucy. Sometimes a pasta bake can become dry over a day or two as the noodles absorb the extra liquid. Serve with some crusty bread and maybe a salad because you know you need ALL the vegetables 😉 A perfect prep on the weekend to enjoy on those crazy weekday nights! Enjoy! —Jess
Looking for other great bakes and dishes for dinner prep? Check out my cooking page for more ideas or click one of the links below!
Tools of the trade
Whenever I am creating casseroles and baked dishes in my kitchen, I have a couple go to tools I need: flexible cutting boards, Pyrex dishes, and good parring knives. I don’t know if I really can live without them, what can I say?
Italian Vegetarian Pasta Bake
Ingredients
- 12 ounces tri-color rotini or other noodle of your choice!
- 1/2 cup chopped green pepper
- 1 cup chopped green zucchini
- 1 cup chopped yellow zucchini
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 1 cup chopped mushrooms
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1/2 tablespoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bring a kettle of water to boil and cook rotini to al dentè. Drain and set aside.
- Heat olive oil in a large sauce pan over medium heat.
- Add 1 tablespoon minced garlic, green pepper, and onion. Sauté for 4-5 minutes, until just tender.
- Add salt, red pepper flakes, basil, oregano, zucchini, and mushrooms. Cook for an additional 5 minutes.
- Stir in diced tomatoes and tomato sauce, allowing to simmer while you mix the cheese mixture.
- In a separate bowl, mix ricotta, 1 cup of the mozzarella, 1/2 cup of shredded parmesan, egg, 1 teaspoon of minced garlic and pepper.
- Layer approximately 2 cups of the vegetable mixture on the bottom of a pyrex pan.
- Add approximately 1/3 of the noodles and then 1/3 of the cheese mixture.
- Continue layering until two more times, but end with the vegetable mixture.
- Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and parmesan. Add a little basil and oregano if you’re feeling fancy.
- Bake for 30 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the mixture is heated through. If you loved browned cheese, urn on the broiler at 500 degrees and cook for 1-3 minutes more, watching VERY closely.
Looking for other great dinner ideas?
Check out the recipes below or head right to my Cooking page!
