Let’s face it. Who isn’t busy at this time of the year? I’m not (ahem, cough, splutter), well I’m not with easy meals like this. Just throw it all into the oven and forget about it.
Make your favourite meatball recipe. I usually add 1 egg, some dried breadcrumbs and a few of my favourite Italian style herbs to ground beef and roll into balls.
Spray a baking dish lightly with oil, place your pasta in the dish and the meatballs on top.
I used the Barilla fusilli pasta and the Cheese and Tomato Pasta Bake sauce. Barilla have made it easy for family dinners with a larger 540ml sized sauce for quick easy meals such as this. This Cheese and Tomato sauce has all the flavours of your typical Italian style pasta bake with an authentic, rich Italian flavour. (There is nothing but real tomatoes, real onions and real garlic in the Barilla range of sauces. That’s why I love them so much.)
Once I poured the pasta sauce over the pasta and meatballs, I added an extra half a jar of water and poured that over the top. Cover the baking dish with alfoil and bake for approximately 20 minutes.
Remove from the oven, take off the alfoil and give a good stir. You’ll find the pasta and meatballs have cooked.
Top with a little grated cheese and return to the oven until melted and golden brown.
Serve with a side salad and garlic bread and dinner is on the table in just on 30 minutes. This could also be done in the slow cooker. A good way to not heat the house up at this time of the year in the southern hemisphere. Buon appetito!
One Pot Baked Pasta & Meatballs
- 500 grams ground beef
- 1/4 cup dried bread crumbs
- 1 egg, to bind
- selection of Italian style herbs
- half box of Barilla Fusilli pasta (or enough pasta of your choice to serve your family)
- 1 x 540ml jar Barilla Cheese & Tomato Pasta Bake sauce
- oil spray
- grated cheese of your choice
- Preheat oven to 170 deg C.
- Mix ground beef, dried breadcrumbs, beaten egg and dried herbs.
- Form into meatballs.
- Lightly spray a suitable baking pan (or slow cooker dish).
- Add pasta and meatballs.
- Top with pasta sauce plus half the jar of water then cover with alfoil.
- Bake in oven for approximately 20 minutes (or 3 hours on high in a slow cooker).
- Remove from oven, take off alfoil and sprinkle with grated cheese. (If cooking in a slow cooker, add cheese and once melted, serve.)
- Return to the oven until cheese has melted.
- Serve with a side salad and garlic bread.
Disclaimer: I was given a selection of Barilla products to try. All opinions, thoughts and photos are my own.
Hi Anne, that looks so good and thanks for making me hungry now! LOL! I pinned and will be making this for sure. Have a Merry Christmas.
Hugs, Julie
Yes – way to busy to cook much. Great Idea Anne.
Looks delish to me Anne, but here's a really silly question…did you cook the pasta first??
So easy – that's my kind of meal! 🙂