Baked Penne Pasta
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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.
This post is created in partnership with Hy-Vee Columbia.
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
- It’s a Big Batch Meal – It’ll feed a lot 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. You’ll find all these ingredients at your local Hy-Vee (Columbia):
Ingredient Notes:
- 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. Use a wooden spoon to break them up as they cook.
- Fresh minced parsley or basil – Not pictured but recommended to add into the cheese mixture and on top before serving.
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Variations & Substitutions
- Use diced tomatoes in place of the whole tomatoes.
- Use marinara sauce 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 like rotini.
How to Make Baked Penne Pasta
Note: Find our full printable recipe with ingredient amounts and directions at the bottom of this post.
Make the Meat Sauce
After sautéing some diced onion and garlic, you will brown your ground beef and Italian sausage. Season with salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and Italian seasoning.
After the meat is browned, drain off some fat and add in the whole tomatoes and tomato sauce.
Let it simmer on low for 20-25 minutes, partially covered (to prevent splattering). Break up the whole tomatoes with a spoon or spatula once they soften. Set aside to cool.
Cook the Pasta
After you get that sauce a-simmerin’, start multitasking.
Start to boil your pasta in salted water. Follow the instructions on your box for cooking it al dente.
Once it’s cooked, drain and set aside to cool. I like to toss mine with a little bit of oil to prevent sticking.
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, part of the mozzarella, Parmesan, salt and some fresh minced herbs. 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 2 1/2 cups 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!
What to Serve with Baked Penne Pasta
Our Italian House Chopped Salad with Italian Parmesan Dressing is a perfect pairing, but this recipe plays nice with others. Here are some other side dish ideas:
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.
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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. Follow our Easy Cheesy Baked Pasta recipe instead.
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
- 1–2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 large onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 pound (8 ounces) lean ground beef
- 1/2 pound (8 ounces) ground Italian sausage (mild or hot)
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes, plus more for serving
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning, crushed in hand
- 1 (14.5 ounce) can whole tomatoes, with juice (NOT no salt)
- 1 (14.5 ounce) can tomato sauce (NOT no salt)
- 1/2 pound (8 ounces) whole wheat penne pasta (sub: regular penne or gluten-free pasta)
- 1 cup (8 ounces) whole milk ricotta cheese
- 3 cups (3/4 pounds) shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
- 1 large egg, beaten
- Optional: 1/4 cup minced fresh parsley or basil, plus more for serving
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:
- Saute Aromatics: Heat oil in a large pot or large deep skillet over medium-high heat until it’s shimmery. Add diced onions and saute for 3-4 minutes, or until starting to soften. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds more.
- Brown Meat: Add ground beef and Italian sausage and cook until browned, breaking it up as it cooks, about 5-7 minutes. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, red pepper flakes, and Italian seasoning while it cooks. If needed, drain off the fat (tip: dump into a colander that’s over a bowl) and return to the pot.
- Cook Sauce: Stir in whole tomatoes and tomato sauce to the meat mixture. Partially cover and simmer for about 25 minutes, stirring occasionally and breaking up the tomatoes with the spoon once they soften. When done, set aside to cool.
- Cook Pasta: Meanwhile, cook the pasta in salted water and according to package directions, just until al dente. Drain, toss with a little oil (to prevent sticking), and set aside to cool.
- Make Cheese/Pasta Mixture: In a large mixing bowl, stir together the ricotta cheese, 1 1/2 cups mozzarella, Parmesan, egg, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper and fresh parsley or basil (optional) until combined. Add in the cooled pasta and just 2 1/2 cups of cooled meat sauce (reserve the rest!). Stir to combine.
- Prep Oven & Pan: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9×13 casserole dish with cooking spray.
- Prep the Casserole: Dump the pasta mixture into the casserole dish. Spread it out evenly. Spoon the remaining sauce over the top evenly. Then, sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese evenly. (Freezing instructions begin here.)
- Bake and Serve: Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until bubbling on the sides and very hot in the middle. If you’d like it to brown a little more on top, turn on the broiler for 1-2 minutes (watch it closely!). Remove from oven and let stand 5-10 minutes before serving. Serve with fresh chopped herbs on top and more Parmesan cheese and warm marinara sauce on the side, if desired.
Freeze For Later: Follow the recipe through Step 7. Cover tightly with a few layers of plastic wrap or foil or an air-tight lid. Label and freeze.
Prepare From Frozen: Thaw in the fridge overnight or thaw in the microwave on defrost setting. Follow step 8.
Notes/Tips
- We updated this recipe on 10/17/24. We tweaked the ingredients just a little to add more flavor (replaced half the ground beef with Italian sausage and added in fresh herbs) and cut the recipe in half so it is more manageable. It bakes all in one 9×13 inch dish now and serves 6 people. (Tip: This is an easy one to double and make a second one for the freezer.)
- Shortcut: Replace the canned whole tomatoes and canned tomato sauce in Step 3 with 1 (24 ounce) jar marinara sauce to save time. No need to simmer it.
- The casserole will suck up the sauce the longer it sits, so you may want to serve it with some extra warm marinara sauce on the side.
- You can use diced tomatoes in place of the whole tomatoes.
- You can use marinara sauce in place of tomato sauce.
- Add veggies! I love to toss in raw chopped spinach or sautéed mushrooms, bell peppers, and/or zucchini.
- You don’t have to use penne pasta. You can substitute with another similar-sized pasta shape, such as rotini.
I was wondering if I were to prep it tonight then can it sit in the fridge until tomorrow and then i can bake it then or do you i HAVE to freeze it?
Hi Tay. You can prep this and then cook it the next day. I would suggest cooking it within about 48 hours of prepping it.
If kept uncooked in fridge overnight do you need to increase cooking time the next day because ingredients are cold?
You shouldn’t have to. Of course, ovens can vary a little so you want it to be bubbly when you take it out. You could also put the casserole on the counter while the oven is preheating for it to warm up slightly.
I made this for my family on our beach vacay & everyone LOVED it!!! They kept saying it was BETTER than lasagna! !
Yay! This is a great one to make ahead and freeze to take on vacation or to throw together when you get there. So glad your people loved it! Thank you for taking the time to leave a review Donna.
Can you use diced tomatoes instead of whole?
Hi Stacy. Yes, I have successfully used diced tomatoes in this recipe.
I made this last night, then baked it today for 10 hungry missionaries. They loved it!! I as worried there wouldn’t be enough, but even with huge helpings and seconds, there were leftovers. I used a huge glass pan way bigger than a 9×13 and it was full. Thanks for a new favorite recipe!
Iris, what an honor to have one of our recipes served to 10 missionaries. Thank you for leaving a comment to tell us this story! And thank you for serving them in that way!
I made this recipe for my firehouse fire police meeting 200 firefighters and all I can say is OMG it came out fantastic I was getting rave reviews everyone loved it
Yes! Love this Rich. And thank you for your service!
I’m getting to understand how this will feed 20 hungry men. Do you triple the recipe?
My family loved this recipe!
Glad to hear it Nikki!
Hi there-which tomato sauce did you use? Thanks
Hi Mary. Just look for plain, canned tomato sauce like this: https://www.walmart.com/ip/Great-Value-Organic-Tomato-Sauce-15-Oz/132719941
This looks delicious! We have an egg allergy in our family, do you think that could be omitted? Or do you have a suggested substitute? Would love to try this!
The egg will add some lightness and lift to the cheese mixture, but you should be totally fine without it. Let us know if you try it without and how it goes.
Can you let me know if it is supposed to use tomato sauce (can without seasoning) or just a regular marinara sauce? I’m a bit confused on that part.
Hi Staci. Yes, it is canned tomato sauce without seasoning. You are adding your own seasonings and essentially making your own sauce, so you just want tomato sauce.
I might have missed it. How many people does this recipe serve?
Hi Ali! Our recipe card says it serves 10-12. The nutrition facts are based on 12 servings. Polly also noted in the recipe that she had more than she could fit in her 9×12 dish, so that could mean a few extra servings as well.
It was EXCELLENT! Thanks for a new family favorite!
Yay! Glad to hear it Kim!
This looks delicious! I plan on making two pans for Christmas Eve; one with meat, and one without. Anything to note or add to the meatless version? Thanks!
Hi Laurie. You do not need to do anything different in the one without meat unless you want to add some veggies, but that’s not necessary either. I hope everyone appreciates your hard work for Christmas Eve!
We love this recipe. Very easy to make and so good!!
Thank you for taking the time to leave a review Mary. We really appreciate it!
Can this be made ahead of time without freezing
Yes! You can prepare it up until baking and leave in the fridge for 2-3 days before baking and serving.
Can you make this in a crock pot?
We have not tested that Taylor. If you do give it a try, we’d love to hear how it goes!
This recipe was a hit with 38 very hungry young men. We quadrupled the recipe, and there was enough for seconds and to-go boxes afterwards. I added mushrooms and used low-fat ricotta to make it a bit healthier. Thanks for this recipe. Bake time for a large double tray is affected–after refrigeration overnight, I baked the dish for 1 hr. 20 mins, and would possibly have gone 1.5 hours. Further, I appreciated the notes re. variations and the video. Thanks again for a delicious recipe.
Wow Nancy! That’s a small army! 🙂 So glad it was well-liked and there was plenty to send home with the hungry guys. Thanks for the tips and for taking the time to leave a review.