Pasta Night! | Baked Manicotti

We try to do pasta at least once a week. The boyfriend says it's one of the things I do best.

While I'm not sure about that, I do love everything cheese-filled and sauce-slathered... not to mention garlic bread.

Originally, I wanted lasagna. It's funny, how tastes change - as a child, I hated lasagna. It was in the same category as brussel sprouts (though cover just about anything in cheese and I'll eat it) and cauliflower. Just. Not. Happening.

Now, however, I can't quite get enough. In the fall and winter I have a crockpot lasagna made with cottage cheese we swear by.

However, despite my lasagna craving, my shopportunist nature won out... big pasta sale, and lasagna was not one of them. Manicotti was, though. Never tried to stuff my own manicotti, but what the hey, sounds absolutely tasty.

So cheesy. So delicious. So worth every bite. Thank you, Anny of AllRecipes, for guiding me through this. And, the great thing about this recipe is you can either use a jarred sauce and shorten it (boil, stuff, sauce, and bake) or make your own, so I've included a recipe for a basic marinara sauce, as well. I love making my own - it's easy, and I use red wine, so there's plenty of, uhmm, tasting.

Round up some garlic bread and enjoy!


Baked Manicotti
Yield | 4 servings

Prep Time | 15 minutes
Cook Time | 30 minutes
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Ingredients:

1 package manicotti
1 pint low fat ricotta cheese
3/4 cup mozzarella cheese (I used a 6-cheese Italian blend)
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, plus 1/4 cup for topping
2 eggs
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon oregano
2 cups spaghetti sauce (jar, or use the basic marinara recipe below!)
Salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bring water to boil and add pasta. Salt (or add olive oil) to keep pasta from sticking. Cook until nearly al dente - they tear easily so don't cook through, the sauces in the oven will soften them.

In a large mixing bowl, add cheeses, eggs, garlic, and oregano. Add salt and pepper, to taste. Mix well. Spoon a little sauce into the bottom of an 11 x 17 baking dish.

If you have piping tools, that's fantastic, but if not, spoon cheese mix into a Ziploc bag. Cut the corner and pipe into the noodle shell. Place filled pasta in dish and top with marinara sauce and remaining parmesan cheese.

So much easier.

Bake for 30 minutes.

Marinara Sauce
Yield | 4 servings

Prep Time | 5-7 minutes
Cook Time | 30 minutes
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Ingredients:

3 tablespoons EVOO
1/2 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tablespoons oregano
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/3 cup red wine (or 1/4 cup red wine vinegar)
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
Salt and pepper, to taste

Heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until onions are translucent. Add oregano and crushed red pepper. Stir and add red wine (or red wine vinegar - use less if using vinegar) to deglaze the pan.

Add canned tomatoes and salt and pepper. Simmer for 20 minutes.

Of course, with my love for capers, this was the perfect time to sneak them in, so feel free to add a tablespoon of the salty, delicious morsels!

So yum!

Coming soon... Quick and Easy Cajun Spinach and Artichoke Dip, Dark Chocolate Coconut Cookies, Pasta Salad with a Balsamic Dressing, Jerk Marinaded Chicken Drumsticks, and so much more!