This for me is the epitome of Italian food. Pasta, mushrooms, spinach, cheese… It is almost like vegi pizza but in a pasta form. It is a great way to get kids to eat their veggies and a good choice for vegetarians. It is a little bit spicy so if your kiddos do not like any heat make sure to eliminate the cayenne pepper from the recipe. You can make this a day before and reheat it and the flavors improves the longer it waits.
You will need: 1lb elbow macaroni pasta (or other small tubes pasta such as penne), 2 tbs olive oil, 1/2 lb mushrooms (for this one I used button, cremini and portabella), 1 onion, 3 garlic cloves, 1 (14.5 oz) can of dice tomatoes, 1 (10 oz) package of frozen spinach (thawed with water squeezed out), 1 roasted red pepper, 1 cup bread crumbs, 1 cup of Parmesian/Romano cheese, 2tbs butter, 1lb of mozzarella cheese, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper.
Boil the pasta per instructions on the box. Preheat the oven to 350 F.
Peel the garlic by first giving it a good wack with a side of a knife. This makes the peeling a lot easier.
Chop it up
Chop up a roasted red pepper, you can also use a 4 oz can of diced pimientos (drained).
Here are my assorted mushrooms. I think I used some of them from my mushroom prints.
Quarter the mushrooms.
Heat the oil over medium heat. When warm
throw in the mushrooms
onions
and garlic.
While the mushroom mixture is cooking, take out that wonderful mozzarella cheese. Try not to eat it all before cooking.
cut it up into even cubes… eat a couple though… don’t be a scrooge… offer some to the kiddos too.
Mix one cup of Parmesian/Romano cheese with
one cup of regular bread crumbs.
This will make the bottom crust and the top crust of the casserole.
Butter a 9x13x2 inch glass baking dish with softened butter.
sprinkle half the breadcrumb/cheese mixture on the dish.
move it around the pan to make sure that is it covered evenly.
Now back to the mushrooms… I am sure that your house is now beginning to fill with wonderful Italian aromas… are you hungry yet? When the mushrooms are tender and the onion is golden stir in the can of tomatoes.
spinach and 1/4 tsp of cayenne pepper and nutmeg.
Mix in the roasted red peppers.
Now let’s take an inventory. You should have: cooked vegie mixture, pasta, mozzarella cheese, breadcrumb/cheese mixture and an empty bowl.
First mix the pasta and vegies together just to make sure they are well distributed.
add in the cheese.
add half of the bread crumb mixture and mix well
put in the baking dish, cover with the remaining bread crumbs mixture.
bake in the preheated oven for 30-40 minutes until golden brown.
Now dig in… it surely smells good
tastes pretty good too.
This looks awesome! I’m so trying it out this week. Thanks:)
God Bless
Thank you !!! I am posting a mediterrean tuna salad in a couple of hours so stay tooned.
How lovely is that!!! I have company coming in a few days and can’t wait to try this on them!
This looks so fantastic! I’m definitely going to make it!
This looks delicious and pretty simple. I’m hoping to try it in the next few weeks!
This is perfect. I’m making this for dinner tonight, and we’ll be able to eat it all weekend. You’re a genius.
Hi, I found you on Tastespotting. The pasta looks killer… so cheesy!
This pasta looks insanely good… i’m so making it. This is an awesome awesome recipe! I”m so excited to try this. GOD BLESS YOU … thank yoU!!!!
That looks SO incredible and the perfect meatless meal!
YUM! This looks like a crowd-pleaser for my family. Can’t wait to try this! Excellent!
Just made and most importantly ate the veggie bake. We normally are mostly vegan, but I didn’t mind one bit adding the organic mozz and parm cheese
my 19 month old loved it as well. Thanks!
Just made this cut it in half and it was plenty to feed three and have sooo much left over. It is absolutely amazing wonderful recipe!
YUM! This looks fantastic! I can’t wait to try it out – thanks for all the great pictures and instructions!!
Oh wow! I want you to know I have made this more than once and it is always a huge success!! Even my meat-eating family and friends always love this pasta bake – one claimed if she could eat this kind of food all the time, she might just give up a lot of the meat she consumes. Thanks! Lovely pictures by the way!
I don’t eat a lot of meat, so I am always looking for good recipes that are easy to make but still taste great. This looks like it will fit the bill nicely. I plan to make this over the weekend….I will make a meal out of this on its own I already know. Thanks for sharing.
I’m preparing this dish as I type.
Does this recipe require that you add the breadcrumbs? Als0 – has anyone added chicken to this? Can’t wait to make it!
I have not added any chicken to the recipe. Breadcrumbs go as a topping so if you don’t have them on hand or don’t like them you can double up parmesan.