Baked Penne Pasta
This post may contain affiliate or sponsored links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Baked Penne Pasta is a delicious and hearty Italian-American pasta dish that features penne pasta mixed with a rich and savory tomato-based sauce, layered with a cheese mixture, and then baked until it’s hot and bubbly.
Reasons You’ll Love This Recipe
Baked pastas like our Spinach Lasagna Rolls, Healthy Mac & Cheese, and Easy Cheesy Baked Pasta are commonly reader favorites. Probably because they usually have these qualities:
- Delicious dinner recipe that all ages enjoy
- Freezer friendly
- Feeds a large group of people
- Easy to make
“I made a 9×9 for supper and froze a 9×13 for later. It was a hit with my husband. We also had to negotiate who got to eat the leftovers!” – Mags ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Ingredients
Here are the main ingredients you’ll need. Keep in mind this is a HUGE recipe! Perfect when you need a big batch recipe.
Ingredient Notes
- Ground beef – We get our grass-fed ground beef from ButcherBox.
- Canned tomato sauce – Adds moisture and depth of flavor to the recipe. You can swap it for marinara if you don’t have any.
- Whole Tomatoes – These add some texture and flavor.
Variations & Substitutions
- Substitute ground beef with Italian sausage.
- Use diced tomatoes in place of the whole tomatoes.
- Use marinara in place of tomato sauce.
- Add veggies! I love to toss in raw spinach, sautéed mushrooms, cooked zucchini, or sautéed bell peppers.
- You don’t have to use penne pasta. You can substitute with another similar short pasta shape.
Note: Find our full printable recipe with ingredient amounts and directions at the bottom of this post.
How to Make Baked Penne Pasta
Make the Meat Sauce
After sautéing some diced onion and garlic, you will brown your ground beef.
After the ground beef is browned, drain off some fat and add in the tomatoes, tomato sauce, salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning.
Let it simmer on low for about 25-30 minutes.
Once it’s done simmering, remove 3 to 4 cups of the sauce to a different bowl to cool down. You’ll see why in a bit.
Cook the Pasta
After you get that sauce a-simmerin’, start multitasking.
Start to boil your pasta. Follow the instructions on your box for cooking it al dente.
Once it’s cooked, drain.
Make the Creamy Filling
While pasta is boiling you can whip together your creamy cheese filling.
In a large mixing bowl, combine ingredients for the filling: ricotta, egg, mozzarella, parmesan, salt, and pepper. Give it a good stir.
Mix the Pasta with the Creamy Filling
Add the cooked and drained pasta into the large bowl with the cheese mixture.
After the pasta and cheese mixture is combined, add in that cooled pasta sauce.
Once you’ve mixed that together, you have a delicious, gooey mess.
Assemble the Casserole & Bake
Pour the pasta into a baking dish. Now top it off with remaining pasta sauce.
Now finish it off with a layer of mozzarella. You know what comes next… bake it!
Pro Tip
This recipe makes a HUGE batch. If you have a lasagna dish, use that. If not, you might consider splitting the batch between two 9×13 dishes.
Freeze one for later! (See more Ground Beef Freezer Meals here).
How to Freeze Baked Penne Pasta
You’ve come to the right place if you’re looking for make-ahead freezer meals.
Not only have we written two freezer meal cookbooks, but we also have some amazing 1 Hour Freezer Prep Plans that walk you through how to make 6 meals in one hour.
Freeze For Later: Follow the recipe right up until baking it. Cover tightly with plastic wrap, foil or a lid. Freeze.
Prepare From Frozen: When ready to cook, you have two options:
- Thawed: Thaw in the fridge (may take up to 48 hours) or thaw in the microwave on defrost setting. Bake at 375 degrees F according to Step 11 in the recipe.
- Frozen: If cooking directly from frozen state, cover with foil. Place the frozen casserole in the oven. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Once it comes to temperature, bake for about 1 hour and 20-40 minutes, until heated through and bubbly. Remove the foil the last 20 minutes.
Freezer Meal Quick Start Guide
Get the best of the best recipes, tutorials, and freezer meal expertise straight to your inbox. A $9.99 value for free!
What to Serve with Baked Penne Pasta
This recipe plays nice with others. Here are some side dish ideas:
FAQs
Yes, this recipe works well to prepare all the way up until baking. You can refrigerate it for a day or two before baking or freeze it.
Yes! You can make this substitution without any problems. Just be sure to keep the amounts the same.
The egg will add some lightness and lift to the cheese mixture, but you should be totally fine without it.
Yes, this recipe will work fine without the ground beef.
Tomato sauce is sold in cans and is thinner and has fewer ingredients than marinara/spaghetti sauce. However, marinara would be a great substitute.
Did you make this? Snap a photo and tag us on Instagram at @thrivinghome so we can see your creations and cheer you on!
Baked Penne Pasta
Freezer-friendly Baked Penne Pasta is an easy, kid-friendly dinner idea. Great for large groups too.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 pounds ground beef (or one pound ground beef & one pound Italian sausage) Here is where you can find meat you can trust.
- 1 (28 ounce) can whole tomatoes, with juice
- 2 (14.5 ounce) cans tomato sauce
- 2 teaspoons Italian Seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- Salt and Pepper, to taste
- 1 pound (16 ounces) whole wheat penne pasta
- 1 tub (15 ounces) whole milk ricotta cheese
- 1 1/2 pounds (6 cups) shredded mozzarella cheese (divided)
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 egg
Before You Begin! If you make this, please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive & continue providing free recipes.
Instructions
Make It Now:
- Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add diced onions and saute for several minutes, or until starting to soften. And garlic and cook for 30 seconds more.
- Add ground beef and cook until browned. Drain off fat, leaving a bit behind for flavor and moisture.
- Add tomatoes, tomato sauce, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Stir and simmer for 25 to 30 minutes.
- Remove 3 to 4 cups of the sauce to a different bowl to cool.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- Begin to boil your pasta. Make sure to undercook it a tad–especially if freezing!
- In a separate bowl, mix together the ricotta cheese, 2 cups of the grated mozzarella, Parmesan, egg, and a dash of salt and pepper.
- Drain the pasta and rinse under cool water to stop the cooking. Pour it into the bowl with the cheese mixture and mix it together.
- Add the cooled meat sauce that you set aside earlier and toss to combine.
- Dump the pasta mixture into a large greased casserole dish or lasagna dish. (NOTE: I ended up using a 9×13 AND a 9×9 dish to fit all of it!) Spoon the remaining sauce over the top, then top with remaining mozzarella cheese. (Freezing instructions begin here.)
- Bake for 20 minutes, or until bubbling. Remove from oven and let stand 5 minutes before serving. Hint: Sprinkle chopped parsley over the pasta before serving!
Freeze For Later: Follow the recipe through Step 10. Cover tightly with plastic wrap, foil or a lid. Freeze.
Prepare From Frozen: When ready to cook, you have two options:
- Thawed: Thaw in the fridge (may take up to 48 hours) or thaw in the microwave on defrost setting. Bake at 375 degrees F according to Step 11 in the recipe.
- Frozen: If cooking directly from frozen state, cover with foil. Place the frozen casserole in the oven. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Once it comes to temperature, bake for about 1 hour and 20-40 minutes, until heated through and bubbly. Remove the foil the last 20 minutes.
Notes/Tips
-
- Substitute one pound ground beef with one pound Italian sausage.
-
- Use diced tomatoes in place of the whole tomatoes.
-
- Use marinara in place of tomato sauce.
-
- Add veggies! I love to toss in raw spinach, sautéed mushrooms, cooked zucchini, or sautéed bell peppers.
-
- You don’t have to use penne pasta. You can substitute with another similar short pasta shape.
I really like how simple and easy the recipe is.
Glad you enjoy this recipe. Thank you for leaving a review!
I’m excited to make this recipe.
By tomato sauce, do you mean pre-made jarred tomato sauce?
No, this is the canned tomato sauce in the store called “Tomato Sauce”. It’s much smoother than jarred marinara, although that can work if you can’t find it.
It was dry! Good flavor but probably needs more sauce! I followed the recipe.
Hi Dave. Thanks for the feedback. It can never hurt to add a little extra sauce, especially if you plan to freeze it or enjoy leftovers for days to come. The pasta can suck up the sauce over time.
Delicious! Easy to make half the recipe though I used the full container of ricotta. Loved it!
Thanks for leaving a review Cheri and letting others know it’s easy to cut in half. This is one of our family favorites.
Followed recipe to the letter, very nicely done.
Made this for a group, so soft peddled the red pepper.added your suggested add-ins of zucchini, spinach, AND mushrooms as a middle layer.
Greatly appreciated!!
Thank you!
So glad it was enjoyed by all. Thanks for taking the time to leave a review James and letting others know that you included our suggested add-ins!
I made this for a group of 10 and they ate every bite! It was delicious… great recipe!
Awesome! Thanks for taking the time to leave a review Jennifer.
Have made it several times and it is always a hit. Makes a large amount to feed a crowd so making it again for Dec 23 when my daughter and her family get here for Christmas
Yay! So glad you can use it to feed your crew.
Thanks for taking the time to leave a review Joanne! This is a great meal for when family comes to visit. I hope you all have a Merry Christmas!
Love love love this recipe! We use ground turkey and fresh mozzarella. Have already made it 2 times and its a huge hit with family and neighbors!
Thanks for leaving a review Steph! So glad your family enjoys this and you share it with neighbors. 🙂
Any tips for placing this re pie in a slow cooker after browning the meat?
Hi Kylie. We haven’t tested this in a slow cooker. Let us know how it turns out if you do!
Making it for a second time. It was delicious..
So glad you enjoyed it Joanne. Thanks for leaving a review!
I also made a 9×9 for supper and froze a 9×13 for later. It was a hit with my husband. We also had to negotiate who got to eat the leftovers!
Negotiating for leftovers is a sure sign of success! Love it. Thanks for leaving a review.