You can rarely go wrong with a big bowl of pasta with meatballs, with rich, comforting tomato sauce. It usually goes down well with everyone in the family and is so just simple and satisfying. We’re taking a big shortcut here of using ready-made meatballs for this recipe, but sometimes needs must, right? You can buy fresh in your weekly shop or even store frozen ones for ultra convenience when ideas, time or cupboard ingredients are in short supply.
Why you’ll love this Meatball Pasta Bake recipe
⭐️ Comforting, satisfying and delicious ⭐️ Convenient and quick ⭐️ Great for a batch cook
About this Meatball Pasta Bake
This actually isn’t a ‘bake’ in the traditional sense as we use the grill at the end to make the cooking more energy efficient, but it is in the sense it’s all cooked and heated together. If you prefer, you can put it back in the oven to melt the cheese on top instead (at 200C for about 20 minutes). I know we’re cheating a bit here with the meatballs, and those of you who would rather make homemade ones can follow my easy Meatballs and Spaghetti recipe here and substitute them into this pasta bake instead. Or for something a little different, you could try my Ikea-style Swedish Meatballs. I actually find the shop-bought meatballs hold their shape better than homemade for this recipe – bonus! Buying the best quality meatballs you can afford will make a difference to the outcome of the flavour too.
Substitutions
Vegetables – My children HATE mushrooms with a passion but I just love them so much that for once, I did use them! They just picked them out and ate some extra cherry tomatoes on the side. Feel free to substitute for or add any other vegetable you prefer.
In the freezer I’m not a big fan of pasta from the freezer, all that said it’s still edible when defrosted and reheated fully, it can just go a bit squishy and overcooked. If you fancy something a little different, try adapting this recipe for my Meatball Orzo Bake or my Cheeseburger Pasta instead! Also I’d LOVE to see your cooking creations. If you’d like to share yours with me, you can tag me on Instagram (@tamingtwins).
