Summer came and went. And apparently so did fall. We skipped ahead to winter. And I needed some stick-to-my-ribs belly-warming grub. This baked cheese ravioli with meat sauce dish hit the spot. And it was crazy easy to make too. Don’t let the simplicity of this dish fool you. It tastes great. It fills you up. And it’s fairly budget-conscious too!
Change Things Up
The base recipe for these baked cheese ravioli with meat sauce is great just as it is. But that doesn’t mean you can’t make a few changes. I like a few good pinches of red pepper flake in my meat sauce. A little kick. Spicy Italian sausage will do that for you too. And don’t hesitate to use something other than cheese ravioli. Mushroom ravioli are great too!
Good Cheese Makes A Great Dish Better
I love shredding my own cheese. Do I save a bunch of money doing that? Probably not. Is it better? You bet! That stuff you buy in the store that’s already shredded has ‘stuff’ on it. Stuff to keep it from sticking together. Well that stuff also makes it melt different. And taste different. So shred your own. It’s easy. I use this shredder. It’s crazy fast and easy to clean up. And it shreds perfectly!
Also try my slow cooker ravioli lasagna.
Baked Cheese Ravioli with Meat Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 pound Italian sausage
- 1 medium sweet onion chopped
- 28 ounces crushed tomatoes
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 25 ounces cheese ravioli frozen
- 2 cups mozzarella shredded
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- Crumble the sausage into a large skillet. Cook over medium heat until lightly browned.
- Add the onion and cook until it is soft.
- Add the crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, and Italian seasoning. Stir. Let the sauce come to a slow simmer.
- Meanwhile, cook the ravioli per the package instructions. Drain well.
- Preheat your oven to 350 F.
- Spray a 9 x 11 baking dish with non-stick spray.
- Spread 1 cup of the meat sauce over the bottom of the dish and spread out evenly. It'll be thin but try to get it everywhere.
- Add the cooked ravioli, distributing it evenly around the pan. Do not overlap the pasta.
- Add half of the cheese then another cup of sauce.
- Add the last of the ravioli and sauce, followed by the remaining cheese.
- Cover the dish in foil and bake for 20 minutes.
- Remove the foil. Turn your broiler on and place the dish under the broiler for a few minutes (keeping an eye on it the entire time) until you get a little browning on top.
- Serve garnished with the chopped parsley.
Nutrition
Nutritional values are approximate.
