This is honestly one of the easiest meals I have ever made.
You can prepare the entire dish in under 5 minutes with just a few basic ingredients that might already be in your pantry. And cleanup is a breeze, which gives you more time for other things… such as deciding on a dessert to go with your easy-to-make dinner. (If you want to continue the “quick and easy” theme, I suggest going with my One Minute Chocolate Mug Cake.)
The recipe came about as one of those “clean out the pantry” creations.
True to my Italian heritage, I always keep a well-stocked supply of tomato products on hand; however, this supply sometimes becomes too well-stocked and threatens to expand past its designated shelf. (Yes, I have an entire shelf of tomato products… I also have one for chocolate… okay, two shelves for chocolate… or maybe three shelves for chocolate… who’s counting?)
(And speaking of chocolate… those are Oil-Free Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bars in the background.)
5 Minute Cheesy Baked Pasta Casserole
(serves 4-6)
- 6 oz penne (2 cups), whole-grain or gluten-free if desired
- 1 (14.5 oz) can tomato sauce
- 1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes
- 1 tsp dried rosemary
- 1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 6-8 oz cheese shreds, such as Daiya (Substitution: Although I haven’t personally tried this, a reader used 1/2 cup nutritional yeast in place of the cheese-type shreds and reported it as a success.)
- optional: 3 tbsp parmesan (such as vegan Parma) or nutritional yeast
(If you want to save even more time, you can cook the pasta the day before.) Cook penne six minutes in salted boiling water. Drain fully, but do not rinse. Grease an 8-inch pan and preheat oven to 400 F. Add all ingredients to the drained penne, transfer to the prepared pan, and bake 30 minutes.
Link Of The Day:
Chely says
I made a half recipe tonight with a few alterations. Added a couple of tbps of TVP to the boiling water. Then used fennel seeds, oregano, a tiny bit of smoked paprika, nutritional yeast, 2 tbsp of Daiya and some spaghetti sauce (needed to be used), omitted the diced tomatoes.
It was excellent, I regret not making the full recipe.
LRM says
I made this recipe using
– 12 ounces of jovial GF pasta (because I am too lazy to use half the box later, hah)
– one can of tomato sauce like Katie
– Two cans of diced tomatoes
– 2 cups large nutritional yeast flakes
Put it all in my long baking dish (greased) and sprinkled GF bread crumbs mixed with non-dairy heart-healthy “buttery” spread” on top.. And baked as directed. It turned out amazing! I really wanted a lot of cheesy flavor and love nutritional yeast so I used a lot. I would still describe the nutritional yeast flavor as mild. My sauce mix did not come out thick, it was spread thinly with the pasta. Thanks Katie for this great recipe!
jane says
I’m definitely going to give this a try.I need more easy,fast,simple recipes.
Emma (Loves Meal Plans!) says
Yum! My kids would love that pasta dish. I also love a quick and easy meal – especially during the week.
This is my latest fave quick dinner: http://www.myfamilymeals.com.au/lemon-and-herb-chicken/ – it can be prepped and on the table in 15 mins but it is not a meat free meal ….
Diana says
This was very tasty. I used 1 tsp Italian seasoning in place of the spices listed, 1 can of basil, garlic, & oregano diced tomatoes, and one chopped up glove of garlic. I probably would add even more garlic next time. It was very easy to make.
Pongodhall says
I do the mooch, and it is gorgeous. It is drying though so I mix it with some of my unsweetened rice milk and mix in, just right. Keeps it cheap, easy, quick and tasty i.e. Just right.