Pasta Pie Recipe

Step 1

Cook the ground beef in a large pot over medium-high heat, breaking it into smaller pieces. Cook until browned, then remove from the pan and drain any fat. Set the cooked ground beef aside in a separate bowl.

Step 2

In the same large pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until softened, for approximately 3 minutes. Add the minced garlic and cook for an additional minute, stirring constantly.

Step 3

Add the diced tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, and ground beef. Mix to combine, then add all the herbs. Bring the complete sauce to a low boil, then simmer on low heat for 15 to 20 minutes.

Step 4

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Step 5

In a small mixing bowl, add the ricotta cheese, beaten egg, grated parmesan cheese, fresh basil, salt, and pepper and combine. Scoop the cheese mixture into a pastry bag without a tip or a Ziploc bag, then snip a small corner off the bag to help pipe this mix into each cooked rigatoni.

Step 6

Grease the inside of an 8-inch springform pan with some nonstick cooking spray. Tilt the greased springform pan on its side at a 45-degree angle (it helps to have it leaning against a heavy duty bowl or glass to accomplish this angle).

Step 7

Fill each rigatoni from one end using the pastry/plastic bag of ricotta filling. Stand the filled pasta in the greased springform pan, starting at the bottom (the end leaning on the table). Once all the noodles are filled and stacked in the springform, there will be a small space at the “top” of the pan.

Step 8

To even the noodles inside the pan and make room for cheese and sauce, make a small space in the center using your non-dominant hand while gently holding the filled noodles upright with your dominant hand and shifting the noodles out to fill the springform pan and any gaps.

Step 9

Place the springform pan flat on a parchment-lined baking sheet.

Step 10

Sprinkle a few tablespoons of mozzarella cheese over the filled pasta, and gently twist the springform pan back and forth to encourage the cheese to fill into the crevices.

Step 11

Pour 1 or 2 cups of the sauce over the pasta, and using the back of a spoon, push the sauce around to fill in between the pieces of pasta. Pour another 1 cup of sauce over the pasta and top with the remaining mozzarella cheese.

Step 12

Loosely cover the pasta pie with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Uncover and cook for 15 minutes until the cheese is cooked through.

Step 13

Change the oven temperature to low broil and finish the pasta pie for 3 to 5 minutes until golden brown. Broil for a couple of minutes if needed.

Step 14

Remove from the oven and let cool for 15 minutes before removing the springform sides. Slice and garnish with fresh chopped basil and grated parmesan.

Step 15

Serve with the remaining sauce.