Happy Saturday, friends! Today is a wet, rainy gameday here in Aggieland, so I figured we could all use some yummy comfort food before the football craziness begins! I guess you could be out tailgating in the rain, but eh... I'd rather be inside with a steamy bowl of pasta. I'm about to stand for like, 4 hours straight, so excuse me if I want to sit on my butt until then. This recipe is brought to you in part by the always-wonderful H-E-B, who is having an Italian product special for the month of October! I just about died of excitement when I opened my package and it had artisan pasta, tomato-basil sauce straight from Italy, extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and some other characteristically Italian products. Squee! As y'all know, I was born in Italy and I'm very proud of my roots, so I couldn't pass up the chance to showcase some yummy Italian recipes!
This recipe is such a classic in my family, and I can remember my mom and both of my grandmothers making it on a weekly basis! "Pasta al Forno" really just means "Pasta Bake" in Italian, so honestly you could put whatever you wanted in here! My mom often makes a version with fried eggplant in it, which is to die for. Another really yummy version is similar to a lasagna bake, with lots of ragu {Italian meat sauce, my recipe is HERE}, bechamel sauce, and of course copious amounts of cheese! I decided to make a simple version with fresh mozzarella cheese and little bites of ham, since that's the one I distinctly remember eating all the time. It's super easy, with minimal prep, and seriously uses just 5 ingredients! What could be better than that? This is comfort food at its finest. Chewy noodles, melty mozzarella cheese, and savory bites of ham... all covered in a warm blanket of Parmesan cheese. Perfection! Italian food is normally very simple and made with good quality ingredients, which is what makes it so delicious!
You can find all of these yummy ingredients at your local H-E-B for a limited time. See all the featured items HERE, then find a store near you HERE. Don’t forget to follow H-E-B on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Pinterest. Happy shopping!
pasta al forno
Ingredients
- 1 package Central Market Armoniche Pasta
- 2 cups Orti di Calabria Tomato & Basil Sauce
- 1 container fresh mozzarella Ciliegine
- 1 cup diced ham
- 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- salt and pepper as needed
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400F.
- Heat a big pot of water to boiling, and cook the pasta 1-2 minutes less than the directions state. Don't forget to salt the water!
- While the pasta cooks, drain the mozzarella, and cut the bites into fourths.
- When the pasta is ready, drain and return to the pot. Stir in the tomato sauce.
- Grab a 8x8 baking dish, lightly coat with olive oil, and pour in about half of the pasta and sauce.
- Sprinkle the pasta with half of the ham, mozzarella, and Parmesan cheese.
- Pour the rest of the pasta in the dish, and top with the remaining ham and cheese.
- Place in oven, and bake for about 20-25 minutes, until the cheese is nice and melted and the corners of the dish are golden and crusty!
- Let cool slightly and serve!
Disclosure: I received materials from H-E-B for this recipe. Posts are truthful, and all thoughts and opinions are my own and not influenced by this sponsorship. Recipe is an original creation by Valentina Celant at TheBakingFairy.net
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