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Italian Meatball & Filled Pasta Bake

Italian Meatball & Filled Pasta Bake

This Italian Meatball & Filled Pasta Bake is easy, family friendly and super comforting. It has homemade Italian meatballs, marinara sauce, cheese and whether you’re a fan of tortellini or ravioli, this pasta bake has both.

Ingredients

Italian Meatballs:
500 gr / 1 pound ground beef
1 large egg, lightly beaten
25 gr / ¼ cup breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
¼ teaspoon ground pepper
22.5 gr / ¼ cup grated Parmesan

Pasta Bake:
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
½ large onion, finely chopped
1 KG / 36 oz marinara sauce
2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
¼ teaspoon ground pepper
250 gr / 9 oz fresh ravioli, of choice
250 gr / 9 oz fresh tortellini, of choice
200 gr / 7 oz shredded mozzarella
45 gr / ½ cup grated Parmesan

Freshly chopped parsley, for garnish

Instructions

Preheat oven to 190C / 375F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Italian Meatballs:
In a medium large bowl, add all of the ingredients for the meatballs and mix until combined. Add 1-2 tablespoons of water to the mix.

Using a small cookie scoop, scoop the meat into your hands and form into a 1 ½‘‘ / 3.8 cm balls and place on the baking sheet.

Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large pan over medium high heat.

Place the meatballs in the pan and fry on all sides until evenly browned. About 5-7 minutes. It‘s alright if they aren‘t fully cooked through at this point because they will finish cooking in the oven. Take the meatballs off the pan and set aside.

Pasta Bake:
Add the chopped onion to same the pan and cook until soft. About 3-5 minutes.

Add the pasta sauce, Italian seasoning salt and pepper. Pour about 4 tablespoons / ¼ cup of water in each jar, close it and shake it. Then pour the water out of the jar into the pan. This both gives you more liquid and cleans the jars. Stir to combine. Then stir in the ravioli, tortellini and meatballs until combined.

Transfer to a 9×13 baking pan/casserole dish. Make sure the pasta is mostly covered in the sauce.

Bake covered with aluminum foil for 20 minutes. Take out of the oven and top with mozzarella and parmesan cheese. Bake uncovered for additional 10-15 minutes until the cheese is golden brown.

Take out of the oven and let rest for 3-5 minutes before serving.

Serve and garnish with freshly chopped parsley.

Notes

If you don’t want the meatballs IN the pasta bake you can also bake the pasta bake for the first 20 minutes without the meatballs. Then top it with cheese and meatballs. Then bake it for additional 10-15 minutes until the cheese is golden and the meatballs are cooked through.

Keywords: Italian Meatball & Filled Pasta Bake