Meatball Casserole recipe

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Ingredients

cooking spray
1 (16 ounce) package penne pasta
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
½ teaspoon fennel seeds
2 (24 ounce) jars tomato-basil pasta sauce
¾ cup chopped fresh basil, divided
¼ cup tomato paste
1 (15 ounce) container ricotta cheese
1 cup chopped roasted red peppers
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 (1/2 ounce) refrigerated Italian-style cooked turkey meatballs, halved
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Nutrition Info

526.3 calories
carbohydrate: 64.5 g
cholesterol: 91.4 mg
fat: 19.3 g
fiber: 2.6 g
protein: 29.7 g
saturatedFat: 9.1 g
servingSize: -
sodium: 1316.5 mg
sugar: 9.7 g
transFat: : -
unsaturatedFat: : -

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly spray a 9x13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.

  2. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add penne and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender yet firm to the bite, about 11 minutes. Drain.

  3. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add garlic and fennel seeds, cook and stir for 1 minute. Pour in pasta sauce, 1/4 cup basil, and tomato paste, simmer, stirring frequently, until sauce is heated through, 10 to 15 minutes.

  4. Meanwhile, mix remaining 1/2 cup basil, ricotta, roasted peppers, Parmesan cheese, eggs, and salt together in a medium bowl.

  5. Spread 1 cup tomato sauce in the bottom of the prepared dish. Cover with 1/2 of the penne, 1/2 of the remaining tomato sauce, all of the ricotta mixture, remaining penne, all the meatballs, and remaining sauce. Cover baking dish with foil.

  6. Bake in the preheated oven until meatballs are heated through, about 30 minutes. Uncover casserole and cover with mozzarella cheese. Continue baking until cheese is melted, about 10 minutes more. Let stand for 15 minutes before serving.

Recipe Yield

1 9x13-inch casserole

Recipe Note

Frozen Italian-style meatballs are an easy shortcut in this pasta casserole flavored with roasted peppers and fresh herbs. Garnish with basil, if desired.

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