This was a recipe I had been wanting to make for a week before I finally got to throw it together one night. It's pretty easy to make, and the dish is definitely a good source of comfort food. Some calorie counting is about to hit the house full force, so once I have the healthier cousin of this recipe figured out I will post it too.
Baked Sweet Italian Sausage and Rigatoni
Ingredients
4 Sweet Italian Sausage
2 T. honey
2 T. olive oil
1/4 T. oregano
½ T. garlic powder
1/4 T. thyme
¼ T. pepper
4 Cups Rigatoni Pasta (cooked al dente )
Ricotta Cheese
Mozzarella (shredded or sliced)
Provolone (shredded or sliced)
Parsley (for garnish)
Marinara Sauce (recipe for homemade, coming soon!)
Pinch of salt
Optional:
1 Yellow Onion (sliced and sautéed soft to bake with the rigatoni and sausage)
Heat oven to 400.
Mix together honey, olive oil, oregano, garlic powder, thyme, and pepper. Drizzle over sausage and cook for 20 minutes in the oven, flipping the sausage at 10 minutes. Cook them with an aluminum cover over the pan.
Meanwhile! Boil water, adding that pinch of salt into the water to flavor the rigatoni that you will be adding once the water comes to a rolling boil. Make sure to stir so the noodles don't stick to the bottom. You want the rigatoni al dente. The pasta will be firm, but no longer hard. You don't want them extremely soft, since they're about to go into the oven for additional cooking. Strain the rigatoni.
Remove the sausages from the oven, do not turn off the oven. Cut the sausages into medallions, and with the rigatoni, toss with the honey-olive oil mixture in the pot you used to cook the noodles. This will also cut down on dishes!
In a medium baking pan, add enough marinara to coat the bottom. Add the rigatoni and sausage. Add more marinara for a nice coat, and then a thin layer of ricotta cheese. Next, add provolone and mozzarella, garnishing the top with parsley. Cook for an additional 10 minutes, and then flip the broiler on for an additional 2-3 minutes to brown the top.
Serve with the veggie of your choice!
