Baked Rigatoni with Cheddar & Broccoli Rabe

I love a cheesy baked pasta loaded with greens. 🙂 This one was bursting with broccoli rabe (of which I am a huge fan) but it could have easily incorporated broccoli, baby broccolini, or other greens such as collards, spinach, and/or kale instead. We ate it with garlic bread and green salad. Great.

This recipe was adapted from Bon Appétit, contributed by Alison Roman. I was a little bit concerned about the spice level after adding an entire teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes, but the finished result was perfect. I baked the casserole in a Dutch oven and the cheesy bread crumb topping formed an incredible crispy crust over the entire top. I may consider adding garlic next time, but it was amazing without it!

Yield: Serves 6 to 8

• 1 lb rigatoni, ziti, or fusilli
• 8 T extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 3 large leeks, white and pale green parts only, halved lengthwise, sliced into 1/4-inch half-moons
• minced garlic, optional
• coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes, plus more to taste
• 2 bunches broccoli rabe or 3 bunches baby broccolini, trimmed, coarsely chopped (I cut the stems into 2-inch pieces and the leaves into 3-inch pieces)(see alternate green vegetable alternatives above)
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 12 oz sharp white cheddar, coarsely grated (about 3 cups), divided (I used 10 oz extra-sharp white cheddar and 2 oz white Beecher’s Flagship Handmade Cheese)
• 1 bunch chives, chopped, divided (about 1 cup)
• 1 cup coarse fresh breadcrumbs or panko (I used a blend of the two)

1. Preheat oven to 425°, preferably on convection.
2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, then add a generous amount of salt. Cook pasta, stirring occasionally to keep it from sticking together, until just barely al dente, about 2 minutes less than package directions. Drain pasta, reserving 1 cup pasta cooking liquid.
3. While the pasta is cooking, heat 5 tablespoons of oil in a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot over medium. (I used a large enameled cast iron Dutch oven.)
4. Add leeks and season with salt and black pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until leeks are softened (but not so much that they don’t have any texture left) and starting to brown, 5–10 minutes.
5. Add red pepper flakes and garlic, if using, to leeks and stir to incorporate.
6. Add broccoli rabe by the handful, stirring to combine and allowing each addition to wilt before adding more.
7. Season with salt and black pepper.
8. Once all of the broccoli rabe has been added, cook, stirring occasionally, until bright green and wilted, about 2 minutes. Remove pot from heat and set aside.
9. Add pasta to reserved broccoli rabe mixture along with cream, three-quarters of the cheese, 2/3 of the chopped chives, and reserved pasta cooking liquid; mix well. Season with salt and black pepper and add more red pepper flakes if you prefer more heat (keep in mind that the saltiness and spiciness will increase as the pasta bakes).(I didn’t add any additional heat.)
10. Transfer pasta to a 3-qt. baking dish (or, if your Dutch oven is ovenproof, just leave it in there). (I scraped down the sides of my Dutch oven and kept the mixture in it to bake- less dishes!)
11. Toss breadcrumbs and remaining 3 tablespoons of oil in a medium bowl until coated; season with salt and black pepper.
12. Scatter breadcrumbs over pasta, then sprinkle evenly with remaining cheese.
13. Bake until pasta is bubbling across the entire surface and breadcrumbs are deep golden brown, 22 to 35 minutes. Let cool slightly.
14. Scatter remaining chives over pasta just before serving.

Prosciutto Carbonara with Spinach

Another weeknight pasta dish- another rigatoni dish! 🙂 Adding greens to this classic dish is a healthy upgrade.

This recipe was adapted from Martha Stewart Living. I used a combination of beet greens and spinach and kept the crispy prosciutto pieces intact instead of crumbling them. Nice.

Yield: Serves 4

• 1 T extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 oz prosciutto, sliced lengthwise into 1/2-inch wide strips (I used 7-8 slices)
• 2 large eggs, plus 2 yolks
• 1 oz Pecorino Romano, grated (about 1/4 cup), plus more for serving
• 12 oz rigatoni
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 6 oz baby spinach or other tender greens (I incorporated sliced beet greens)

1. In a large skillet, heat oil and half of prosciutto over medium; cook, stirring occasionally, until prosciutto is crisp, 3 to 4 minutes. Drain on paper towels.
2. In a bowl or (2-cup) glass measuring cup, whisk together whole eggs, yolks, and grated cheese.
3. Cook pasta in a pot of salted boiling water 1 minute less than package instructions. Reserve 1 cup pasta water, then drain.
4. Slowly whisk 1/4 cup pasta water into egg mixture.
5. Add pasta and spinach to skillet, then slowly add egg mixture to pasta.
6. Stir constantly over low heat until sauce thickens and clings evenly to pasta and greens wilts slightly, 3 to 5 minutes; add more pasta water as needed to create a silky sauce.
7. Stir in all prosciutto. Serve with more cheese and pepper, as desired.

Baked Rigatoni with Eggplant, Tomatoes & Ricotta

More eggplant! This dish is a great vegetarian alternative to a traditional baked ziti. A crowd-pleasing weeknight comfort-food pasta casserole. 🙂

This recipe was adapted from Food and Wine, contributed by Jonathan Waxman of Barbuto in NYC. I used San Marzano tomatoes instead of beefsteak and modified the proportions and method. I loved that it incorporated pesto.

To make the dish more healthy, Waxman replaces the traditional béchamel sauce with eggplant. The original recipe even suggests using whole-wheat pasta, if desired. Don’t worry… it is still an indulgent baked pasta dish with butter and plenty of cheese. 😉

Yield: Serves 8

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for greasing
• 1 pound rigatoni (whole wheat pasta can be used, if desired)
• 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 medium eggplants (2 pounds), cut into 3/4-inch dice
• coarse salt
• freshly ground pepper
• 1 medium to large yellow onion, finely chopped
• 8 garlic cloves, chopped
• 4 beefsteak tomatoes (2 pounds), cut into 1/2-inch dice or 28-oz can San Marzano tomatoes, with juice, cut into pieces with kitchen shears
• 1/3 cup prepared pesto
• 1 cup fresh ricotta cheese
• 8 ounces fresh mozzarella, torn or shredded (1 1/2 cups)
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

1. Preheat the oven to 375°, preferably on convection.
2. Butter a 9-by-13-inch ovenproof baking dish. (I used cooking oil spray.)
3. In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook the rigatoni until al dente, about 8 minutes. Drain, then transfer to a large bowl.
4. Toss the pasta with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil.
5. Meanwhile, in a large non-stick skillet or sauté pan, heat 1/4 cup of the olive oil. Add half of the eggplant and season with salt and pepper. Cook over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add the eggplant to the pasta. Repeat with another 1/4 cup of olive oil and the remaining eggplant.
6. Add the onion, garlic and remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil to the skillet. Cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until the onion is lightly golden, about 5 minutes.
7. Add the tomatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, until they have broken down and thickened to a sauce consistency, 7 to 8 minutes.
8. Stir in the 4 tablespoons of butter.
9. Add the tomato sauce to the pasta and eggplant along with the pesto and ricotta; season with salt and pepper and toss well.
10. Transfer the rigatoni to the prepared baking dish. Top with the mozzarella and Parmigiano-Reggiano and bake for about 20 minutes, until bubbling and golden on top.
11. Let the pasta stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Cauliflower Bolognese

This healthy, hearty, and tasty vegetarian dish is from one of Bon Appétit’s “healthy-ish” issues. It initially had a mixed reception from the meat lovers in my house because the sauce closely resembled meat sauce in appearance and texture- but not in taste, of course. They gobbled it up in the end. 😉

This recipe was adapted from Bon Appétit, contributed by Andy Baraghani. I increased the amount of garlic, used freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, and reserved pasta water to adjust the consistency of the sauce (and to reheat leftovers). I served it with roasted asparagus. Yum.

Yield: 6 servings

• 12 oz mushrooms, such as shiitake or crimini, stems removed
• 1 medium head of cauliflower (about 2¼ lbs), broken into florets
• 6 T extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
• 4 T unsalted butter, divided
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 6 to 10 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 1 chile, such as serrano, Holland, or Fresno, thinly sliced, or ½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 T finely chopped rosemary
• ⅓ cup double-concentrated tomato paste
• Kosher salt
• 1 lb rigatoni
• 2 oz finely grated Parmesan (about 1 cup), plus more for serving (I used Parmigiano-Reggiano)
• 3 T finely chopped parsley
• freshly grated zest of 1/2 to 1 lemon

1. Pulse mushrooms in a food processor until finely chopped. Transfer to a small bowl. Wipe out food processor bowl.
2. Working in 3 batches, pulse cauliflower in food processor until pieces are about the size of a grain of rice (some smaller and some larger ones are fine), transferring to a medium bowl as you go.
3. Heat ¼ cup oil and 2 T butter in a large heavy pot over medium-high.
4. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, 4–6 minutes.
5. Add onion and 2 T oil to pot. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is very soft and golden brown, 6–8 minutes.
6. Add garlic, chile, and rosemary and cook, stirring occasionally, until garlic is softened and mixture is very fragrant, about 3 minutes.
7. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly, until paste is slightly darkened, about 2 minutes.
8. Add cauliflower and cook, yes, still stirring occasionally, until cauliflower is cooked down slightly and begins to stick to bottom of pot, 6–8 minutes.
9. Season with salt, then keep warm over low heat.
10. Meanwhile, cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water, stirring occasionally, until almost al dente, about 1 minute less than package directions. Reserve 2 cups of pasta water.
11. Using a slotted spoon, transfer pasta to pot with sauce.
12. Add Parmesan, remaining 2 T butter, and 1 1/2 cups pasta cooking liquid. Increase heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until pasta is al dente and sauce is clinging to pasta, about 3 minutes.
13. Remove from heat and stir in parsley.
14. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt (it’ll probably need another pinch or two).
15. Finely zest lemon over pasta and toss once more.
16. Divide pasta among bowls. Top with more Parmesan, then drizzle with oil.

Pasta with Sausage, Basil, & Mustard

Happy Mother’s Day to all of the mom’s out there! ❤ I have a moment to share a recipe with you while my husband is making our celebratory pancake breakfast. 🙂

This is another dish from Food and Wine magazine’s 40th Anniversary Special Edition titled “Our 40 Best-Ever Recipes.” I’ve already made it twice because my son is obsessed! 😉

The recipe for this quick, easy and very tasty dish was adapted from British cookbook author Nigel Slater. I used a combination of sweet and hot Italian sausages. Fabulous!

Yield: Serves 4 to 6

• 1 pound penne, rigatoni or medium shells
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 hot Italian sausages, meat removed from casings and crumbled (about 3/4 pound)
• 4 sweet Italian sausages, meat removed from casings and crumbled (about 3/4 pound)
• 3/4 cup dry white wine
• 3/4 cup heavy cream
• 3 tablespoons grainy mustard
• pinch of crushed red pepper
• 1 cup thinly sliced basil

1. Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until al dente; drain.
2. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large, deep skillet. Add the sausage meat and brown over moderately high heat, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the wine and simmer, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom, until reduced by half, about 5 minutes.
4. Add the cream, mustard and crushed red pepper and simmer for 2 minutes.
5. Remove the skillet from the heat, add the pasta and basil and toss to coat. Serve at once.

Pasta al Forno with Asparagus and Chard

This dish was the first-runner up for Valentine’s Day dinner. It was a Valentine’s Day bonus that I made it in addition to our celebratory biscuit-topped Chicken Pot Pie. Right? Why choose when you can have both? 🙂

This recipe was adapted from The Sullivan Street Bakery Cookbook by Jim Lahey. I increased the amount of vegetables, modified the baking temperature, and incorporated the garlic used to make the garlic oil. We could eat some sort of cheesy, veggie pasta every night of the week. Great!

Yield: Serves 6 to 8

For the Béchamel:

• 5 T (70 g) unsalted butter
• 2 T (20 g) all-purpose flour
• 3 cups (650 g) whole milk
• 1/4 tsp (2 g) fine sea salt
• 1/4 tsp (1 g) freshly grated nutmeg

For the Pasta:

• 2 T (24 g) coarse salt
• 1 pound (454 g) penne or rigatoni
• 1 bunch Swiss chard (about 1/2 to 3/4 pound), large stems removed, cut into 1-inch ribbons
• 1 bunch thin asparagus (about 1/2 to 3/4 pound), cut into 1-inch pieces
• 2 T (30 g) extra virgin olive oil
• 6 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
• 1 batch béchamel, about 3 cups (recipe above)
• 1 1/2 cups (130 g) grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

To Make the Béchamel:

1. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat.
2. Whisk in the flour and cook, whisking constantly, until the flour is a light butterscotch color, about 2 minutes.
3. Add the milk in a slow, steady stream, whisking continuously to keep lumps from forming.
4. Continue to whisk and cook for 5 minutes or until the sauce thickens and has the consistency of heavy cream.
5. Pour the sauce into a bowl to cool.

To Finish the Dish:

1. Bring 6 quarts of water to a boil, add the salt, and cook the pasta according to the package directions for al dente.
2. Drain the pasta well and spread it out over the surface of a rimmed baking sheet.
3. Heat the oven to 475, preferably on convection.
4. Steam the chard and asparagus for 4 minutes, or until tender. Lightly season with salt and pepper.
5. Heat the olive oil in a small skillet over medium-high heat, add the garlic, and cook for a minute or so, until it begins to sizzle. Lower the heat and continue to cook for another 3-4 minutes, until the garlic is lightly browned. Remove from the heat and set aside.
6. Brush the inside of a 9 x 13-inch casserole dish with some of the garlic oil.
7. In the pot that was used to cook the pasta, combine the cooled pasta, the garlic oil (including the garlic, if desired), the béchamel, half of the grated cheese, the steamed asparagus and chard. Stir until well incorporated.
8. Pour the mixture into the prepared casserole dish and top with remaining cheese.
9. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the pasta begins to brown on top.

One Year Ago: Flattened Chicken Thighs with Roasted Lemon Slices

Two Years Ago: Meera Sodha’s Chicken Curry

Four Years Ago:

• Steakhouse Creamed Spinach vs. Lighter Creamed Kale
• Bruschetta Bianca

Five Years Ago:

• Button Mushrooms à la Crème
• Vodka Sauce

One-Pot Baked Pasta with Sausage and Broccoli Rabe

So, this dish uses broccoli rabe instead of broccoli- but I’m still including it in my “series.” 🙂 This is a skillet version of one of my favorite classic Italian dishes. It was delightfully cheesy too.

This recipe was adapted from Bon Appetit, contributed by Claire Saffitz. I used large garlic cloves and decreased the broiling time to 2 minutes. We ate it with a large green salad. Absolutely delicious!!

Yield: Serves 6

• coarse salt
• 12 ounces Fontina and/or aged cheddar cheese (about 4 1/2 cups), divided
• 6 large garlic cloves
• 2 large sprigs sage
• 1 bunch of broccoli rabe
• ¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 pound sweet or hot Italian sausage
• ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 2 cups half-and-half
• 1 pound ridged medium pasta shells, or large tube pasta, such as lumaconi or rigatoni

1. Place racks in center and upper third of oven; preheat to 325, preferably on convection.
2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, for the pasta. Salt generously.
3. Grate the Fontina cheese on the large holds of a box grater (you should have about 4½ cups).
4. Smash the garlic cloves, peel, and coarsely chop.
5. Pick all sage leaves from stems and set aside about 10. Finely chop remaining leaves (you should have about 1 tablespoon).
6. Trim tough dried ends from the broccoli rabe, then cut stems into 2″ pieces. Leave leafy ends long.
7. Heat a deep, large, ovenproof skillet, preferably cast iron, over medium-high. Add ¼ cup oil and swirl to coat.
8. Remove sausage from casings and add to skillet. Break into small pieces with a wooden spoon. Cook, undisturbed, until sausage is browned, about 4 minutes. Stir a couple of times and continue to cook, undisturbed again, until sausage is fully cooked through, about 3 minutes longer.
9. Add garlic, chopped sage, and red pepper flakes, and cook, stirring, until garlic is golden, about 2 minutes.
10. Stir in half-and-half and simmer until sauce is thickened slightly, about 2 minutes. Reduce heat to low.
11. Gradually add about two-thirds of cheese, bit by bit, stirring constantly and letting cheese melt completely before adding more, until sauce is smooth and thick, about 3 minutes; season with salt and remove from heat.
12. Meanwhile, cook pasta in boiling salted water 2 minutes shy of package instructions (8–10 minutes depending on type).
13. During the last 2 minutes, add all of broccoli rabe to pot with pasta. Drain in a colander and shake several times to remove excess water. Return pasta and broccoli rabe to empty pasta pot.
14. Add cheesy sausage mixture from skillet to pot with pasta. Stir until pasta and broccoli rabe are coated in sauce, then transfer everything back to skillet.
15. Cover skillet tightly with foil and bake on center rack until pasta is tender and sauce is bubbling, 30–40 minutes. Let rest a few minutes while you heat broiler.
16. Remove foil and top with remaining cheese.
17. Toss sage leaves with remaining 1 T oil in a small bowl and arrange over pasta.
18. Broil until cheese is browned and bubbling in spots, about 2 to 5 minutes (depending on strength of broiler).
19. Let pasta cool a minute or two before serving.

One Year Ago: 

• Birthday Lasagna

Two Years Ago:

• Pancetta, White Bean, & Queso Fresco Empanadas
• Chicken & Corn Empanadas

Four Years Ago:

• Baked Pasta with Spinach, Chicken Sausage, & Vodka Sauce
• Classic Mozzarella Grandma Pizza Pie

Five Years Ago:

• Speedy Baked Ziti
• Chicken & Kale Casserole