Last night we had some company over. They were going to be arriving late due to their work schedule, so I figured that I would whip up something easy and tasty which would hold until they arrived. I know that you have had some type of baked pasta in the past, but this is a little different with a couple twists. The sauce has an excellent mouth-feel and the pasta as a whole is hearty and filling. Keep in mind that buying ready-made sauce is just fine to prepare this meal in record time. The secret to this recipe is the sour cream which takes the edge off the pasta sauce.
Baked Pasta:
Ingredients:
1 box pasta- any type will do. Tortiglioni (tubular corkscrew pasta) is particularly good with this dish.
1 jar jarred Vodka Tomato sauce
1 jar jarred Four Cheese sauce
1.5 lbs Italian sausage- in sausage form preferably
1 12oz box of baby Bella mushrooms
1 can large or extra large black olives
4 tbsp chopped garlic (I use the type out of the jar to save time)
3 tbsp chopped fresh oregano
3/4 cup sour cream
Green Tabasco sauce
2 cups shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup grated parmesan
Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350.
Heat generously salted water in a large pot for the pasta. Add some olive oil to the water. When it comes to a boil, add pasta and cook until al dente, about 6-7 minutes. It will continue to cook in the oven.
Chop sausage into 1″ segments. Set aside.
Trim and clean mushrooms. Slice into quarters and set aside.
Drain olives and chop roughly (gives the meal a rustic look) and set aside.
Heat saute pan on medium-high and add sausage- brown on all sides.
Move sausage into a large mixing bowl (large enough to hold all the ingredients). Keep the pan fat to cook mushrooms in. Add the mushrooms and saute for 4-5 minutes.
Reduce heat to medium and add a little olive oil and the minced garlic. After about a minute, add the olives and cook for another 2-3 minutes, being careful not to burn the garlic.
Drain pasta in a colander and put into the mixing bowl. Add both jars of sauce and stir. Add in the mushroom mixture and stir. Add the sour cream, a couple shakes of green Tabasco, oregano and some of the parmesan. Stir it up and add salt and pepper to taste.
Add 1/2 of the pasta mixture to a 9X13 baking dish. Even it out and layer with 1/2 of the mozzarella. Add the remaining pasta, even it out and add all remaining cheese to the top.
Pop it in the center of the oven and bake for about 45 minutes to an hour. If it starts to look dry, cover with foil and reduce the heat to 200 to keep warm until it is time to eat. Serve with a light sprinkle of chopped oregano and a side of toasty garlic bread.
Wine paring for this meal: Although my wife will disagree with me, I lean toward a light Chianti for this meal, although a more hearty wine will certainly stand up against it. Due to the mushroom flavor, I also lean toward a more full malbec to complement the dish.
Enjoy!