Three Cheese Pesto Pasta Bake with Sausage

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Is it a pasta or is it a cake?? I'm not entirely sure but either way this Three Cheese Pesto Pasta Bake is fantastic!

Three Cheese Pesto Pasta Bake with Sausage from www.whatsgabycooking.com (@whatsgabycookin)


 

We're kicking things off this week with a Three Cheese Pesto Pasta Bake that is nothing less than decadent. It's part pesto/ricotta mixture, part spinach/sausage mixture and part white wine roux cheese sauce that brings everything together. Is it low calorie - absolutely not. Is it comfort food in a bowl - absolutely. Should you make this next time there's a slight chill in the air and you need something that's comforting and doubles as excellent leftovers - YES YOU SHOULD.

Three Cheese Pesto Pasta Bake with Sausage from www.whatsgabycooking.com (@whatsgabycookin)

Good news for anyone out there that's vegetarian - you can EASILY omit the sausage portion of this and make it 100% vegetarian with very little effort! You're welcome, I've thought of everything! Carbs, Cheese, Optional Meat. Just here to make everyones fall a little bit more delish. Need some more baked pasta dishes... got you covered!

Our Fav Baked Pasta Dishes :

Three Cheese Pesto Pasta Bake with Sausage from www.whatsgabycooking.com (@whatsgabycookin)
Three Cheese Pesto Pasta Bake with Sausage from www.whatsgabycooking.com (@whatsgabycookin)

Three Cheese Pesto Pasta Bake with Sausage

Author: Gaby Dalkin
5 from 6 votes
Three Cheese Pesto Pasta Bake is the most epic pasta bake and shaped pretty much like a cake - what's not to love!!
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine American
Servings 6 people

Ingredients
  

  • ¼ cup unsalted butter
  • ¼ cup all purpose flour
  • ½ cup dry white wine
  • 3 ½ cups whole milk
  • pinch of nutmeg and cayenne pepper
  • kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper
  • 1 egg, lightly beaten
  • 1 cup shredded fontina cheese
  • 1 ½ cups grated parmesan cheese, divided
  • 16 ounces extra large rigatoni
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 8 ounces spicy Italian sausage
  • ½ teaspoons red pepper flakes
  • 6 cups spinach
  • ½ cup basil pesto
  • 1 cup fresh ricotta
  • fresh basil and more parmesan to garnish

Instructions
 

  • Heat the oven to 375 degrees F. Spray a 9in springform pan with cooking spray and dust lightly with a handful of grated parmesan cheese and set aside
  • In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat, once bubbling add in the flour and whisk continuously for 2-3 minutes until smooth. Add in the white wine followed by the milk, and cook for until thick, about 15 minutes. Season with salt, pepper, nutmeg and cayenne. Remove from heat and stir in the egg, fontina and 1 cup parmesan. Place over super low heat to keep warm.
  • Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook pasta according to package directions until al dente. Drain and set aside.
  • In a medium saucepan over medium high heat, add olive oil and crumble in the sausage cooking until browned 5-6 minutes, remove sausage to a bowl and toss in the spinach stirring just to wilt, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat. Combine with the cooked sausage and crushed red pepper and set aside.
  • Stir ricotta and pesto together, set aside.
  • Combine the cooked pasta and the cheese sauce, layer ⅓ of it into the prepared pan followed by ⅓ of the ricotta mixture and ⅓ of the spinach and sausage mixture. Repeat so you have three layers ending with sausage and spinach. Sprinkle with the remaining ½ cup parmesan cheese on top.
  • Bake in the oven till golden brown 35-40 min. Remove and let sit for about 30 mins. Remove the side from the springform pan sprinkle with torn basil and more parmesan.

Notes

Good news for anyone out there that’s vegetarian – you can EASILY omit the sausage portion of this and make it 100% vegetarian with very little effort!

Nutrition Information

Calories: 980kcal | Carbohydrates: 75g | Protein: 41g | Fat: 55g | Saturated Fat: 25g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 16g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 163mg | Sodium: 1215mg | Potassium: 784mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 4385IU | Vitamin C: 9mg | Calcium: 697mg | Iron: 3mg
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21 Comments

  1. I haven't been able to find GF extra large rigatoni....would regular size GF rigatoni work and if so, would I need to add more than the 16 ounces in the recipe, to account for the difference in size? Thanks!

  2. If you make ahead is it best to bake it then freeze and reheat, or freeze before baking? If the second, should it thaw before baking?

  3. 5 stars
    I love all your recipes! This one looks especially delicious. Would you recommend a sub for the flour to make it gluten free? Thanks!

  4. I love all you recipes and this one looks especially delicious. What could I sub for the flour to make it gluten free? Thanks!

  5. 5 stars
    So, so good! My family loved it. I subbed oatmilk for the whole milk and the sauce had the perfect consistency. The sausage didn’t wilt the spinach quite enough, so I’ll make a point to do that next time. Perfect fall/winter comfort food.

    1. 5 stars
      Made this tonight for dinner! So good! I also agree with another comment that the spinach did not wilt all the way when mixed with the sausage but everything else turned out well. Thanks for the recipe!

  6. I’m absolutely making this for dinner this weekend! I don’t have a springform pan though. I have tons of round cake pans and various casserole dishes - would either of these be a good substitute?

  7. So... the last time I tried a recipe like this in a spring form pan (not one of your recipes!) while cooking, the sauce leaked out of the bottom and coated the bottom of my oven. It doesn't do that when I make something like a cheesecake, so not sure if it was just a bad recipe or user error, but now I'm sort of scared to try this one.

5 from 6 votes (1 rating without comment)

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