Baked Beef and Mozzarella Penne
Rich tomato meat sauce tossed with penne pasta and green beans, finished in the oven under a bubbling blanket of golden mozzarella.
- Prep: 15 min
- Cook: 25 min
- Total: 40 min
- Servings: 6
- Cuisine: Italian
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: $3.58/serving
Dietary
- Nut-Free
- Egg-Free
- High-Protein
- Low-Sugar
Tags
- bake
- comfort food
- crowd-pleaser
- kid-friendly
- savory
- rich
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef (90% lean)
- 1 package penne pasta (16 oz box)
- 1 jar marinara sauce (24 oz jar)
- 1 package frozen green beans (12 oz package, thawed)
- 1 yellow onion (medium, diced)
- 3 clove garlic (minced)
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning (dried)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 0.5 teaspoon black pepper (ground)
- 2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (part-skim)
- 0.5 cup grated parmesan cheese (grated)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F and lightly grease a 9x13-inch baking dish.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, cook penne pasta for 9 minutes until al dente, drain, and set aside.
- In a large skillet over medium-high heat, cook ground beef and diced yellow onion for 6 minutes, breaking the beef into crumbles, until browned and meat thermometer reads 160°F; drain any excess fat.
- Add minced garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, and black pepper to the skillet, stirring for 1 minute until fragrant.
- Stir in the marinara sauce, thawed frozen green beans, and cooked penne pasta until thoroughly coated.
- Transfer the pasta mixture to the prepared baking dish and sprinkle shredded mozzarella cheese and grated parmesan cheese evenly over top.
- Bake uncovered at 375°F for 18 minutes until the cheese is completely melted, bubbly, and lightly golden around the edges.
Notes
Assemble the casserole earlier in the afternoon and refrigerate until ready to bake; add 5 minutes to bake time if chilling.
Nutrition (per serving)
- Calories: 641
- Protein: 40.8 g
- Carbohydrates: 74.9 g
- Fat: 21.3 g
- Fiber: 8 g
- Sodium: 1256 mg
- Saturated Fat: 9.7 g
- Sugar: 9.1 g
- Cholesterol: 79 mg