MILLION DOLLAR BAKED RIGATONI

Million dollar baked rigatoni is comfort food at its best made with pasta tossed in a hearty meat sauce and baked in between layers of mozzarella, Parmesan and Alfredo sauce.

Million Dollar Baked Rigatoni

From the recipe collection of Tara Ippolito

Million dollar baked rigatoni is a delicious and flavorful pasta the whole family is going to love.

I promise you that I’m not just saying that. It’s a very true statement, believe me.

My brother Keith and his wife, Sarah had a 2nd birthday party for my nice Sadie last week. Happy Birthday to her! Anyway, I wanted to bring a dish over to help contribute to the celebration.

Now, I’ve tried Million Dollar Spaghetti, Million Dollar Tortellini, and Million Dollar Chicken Casserole and those were all 100% hits.

Making a million dollar rigatoni just made perfect sense to be done next. And I have to say, I think this was my favorite out of them all.

The entire party agreed with me, too, I think. It was eaten up in no time at all.

I got so many compliments on it from everyone who was there. It was the perfect recipe to make.

If you need a delicious dinner to make for a family function or casual dinner at home, this one is it.

I hope you give this recipe a try. If you do, I know you’ll love it just as much as my family and I do.

Million Dollar Baked Rigatoni Variations

I like this recipe for baked rigatoni made just the way it is but here are some ways to change it up if you’d like to.

• Pasta- Use any kind of tube like pasta that you’d like. It all works.
• Meat- Feel free to omit the meat if you’d prefer to make this vegetarian. You could also use ground pork or veal instead of beef, too.

• Alfredo Sauce- I used Jarred alfredo sauce to save time but I also have a really great recipe if you’d like to use it CLICK HERE. Try Raoes if you’re going the jarred sauce route. It’s the best!
• Meat Sauce- I highly recommend using my Meat Sauce Recipe but use your own if you have one.

Other Easy Pasta Recipes

If you like super easy to make pasta recipes like this one, here are some others that I know you’ll love, too.

• Creamy Tortellini With Pancetta & Peas
• Baked Italian Sunset Pasta
• Pesto Alfredo With Sundried Tomatoes
• Spicy Vodka Rigatoni

Million Dollar Baked Rigatoni Ingredients

• Rigatoni, cooked to al dente ( I used Mezzi Rigatoni)
• Meat Sauce
• Parmesan Cheese
• Alfredo Sauce, jarred or homemade
• Mozzarella Cheese, shredded
• Ricotta Cheese
• Shredded Basil
• Oregano

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°

First, mix the pasta into the Meat Sauce until it’s evenly coated and combined.

Then, spread half of the pasta with meat sauce onto the bottom of a 9 x 13" baking dish.

Then, sprinkle the top with Parmesan cheese and pour half of the Alfredo sauce on top. Do your best to spread the sauce out evenly with the back of a spoon.

Next, add a layer of shredded mozzarella cheese.

Now, add the rest of the pasta with meat sauce on evenly on top.

Next, in a small bowl, mix the ricotta cheese and oregano together.

Now, take spoonfuls of the ricotta mixture and place them directly into the pasta, making little holes. They can be randomly spread out wherever you’d like. Just be sure to smooth the top over with the surrounding pasta when you’re done.

Then, evenly spread out the rest of the Alfredo sauce.

Now, add another thin layer of Parmesan cheese and the rest of the shredded mozzarella cheese.

Next, cover the pasta with foil and place it into the center rack of the oven for 30-40 minutes or until it’s hot and bubbly.

Just a little tip- spray the foil with cooking spray so the cheese doesn’t stick.

Finally, let it sit for 10 minutes, garnish with shredded basil and enjoy!