Ricotta & Mushroom Stuffed Rigatoni Recipe

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Ricotta & Mushroom Stuffed Rigatoni Recipe

The temperature here in Florida may still be quite warm, but it is in fact fall and I can’t help but shift into comfort-cooking mode. For me, that means that lots of pasta dishes and comforting soups are frequently in the dinner rotation. A few months ago, I made stuffed rigatoni for the first time and fell in love with both the process of making it and the end result. The rigatoni was filled with a mixture of ricotta, mozzarella and provolone cheese and minced mortadella and was served in a spicy tomato sauce. While enjoying this dish, a number of alternative filling possibilities entered my mind and a simple mixture of ricotta and mushroom was one of the first.

Ricotta & mushroom stuffed rigatoni
Ricotta & mushroom stuffed rigatoni

I’ve been making marinara at least once (sometimes twice) per month, usually on Sundays, for at least ten years now. Over the course of these ten years, tweaks and changes have been made to the recipe and a few years ago, I landed on what works best for my taste. The ingredient list is simple, but depends heavily on quality ingredients – like premium whole peeled tomatoes, 24 month parmigiano reggiono rinds and some good red wine. Luckily, Rollin’ Oats is a mecca for premium ingredients. For the sauce, they have a few canned tomato offerings that I recommend, like Cento and also organic variations from Muir Glen and Bionature. And we all know that they have a wonderful selection of great wines to choose from and a few experts on their staff to help you make a selection. You’re only using 1/4 cup in this recipe, but I always recommend using a wine that you would drink when cooking.

You could undoubtedly assemble this recipe on a weekday, however, I think it is best enjoyed on a slow Saturday or Sunday. In the recipe, I suggest cooking the sauce for at least an hour, but you can definitely allow it to simmer for up to a few hours. The smell of marinara flowing through the home is one of my favorite scents ever. You can use this sauce in many other recipes like meatballs, chicken parmesan or other pastas of course like spaghetti.

Plated dish of comforting stuffed rigatoni and a simple marinara sauce
Plated dish of comforting stuffed rigatoni and a simple marinara sauce
Ricotta & mushroom stuffed rigatoni

Ricotta & Mushroom Stuffed Rigatoni Recipe

Abby Allen-Leach
This comforting pasta dish is comprised of rigatoni that is stuffed with a mix of creamy ricotta cheese and savory mushrooms that is then baked in a simple marinara sauce.
No ratings yet
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 13 minutes
Course Dinner, Main Course, Main Dish
Cuisine American, Italian
Servings 4 people
Calories 718 kcal

Equipment

  • 1 ovensafe skillet or large dutch oven
  • 1 Blender immersion or other high powered blender

Ingredients
  

Ricotta & Mushroom Filling

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • tsp tsp salt divided
  • 8 oz mushrooms diced into very small pieces - shiitake, baby bella, or most any other mushroom will work
  • 10 oz ricotta cheese
  • 1 egg

Rigatoni & Assembly

  • 16 oz rigatoni you may have leftover rigatoni - save them for another use
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/4 cup parmesan grated
  • 1/4 cup fresh basil roughly chopped or torn

Instructions
 

Ricotta & Mushroom Filling

  • Heat 1 tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Add mushrooms and 1/2 tsp salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid from mushrooms has evaporated completely - about 10-12 minutes.
    Cooking down the mushrooms
  • Add cooked mushrooms to a bowl with ricotta, beaten egg and remaining 1 tsp salt. Allow mixture to cool in the refrigerator while you prepare the marinara.
    Ricotta and mushroom filling ready to refrigerate
  • After filling has cooled for an hour, add filling to a sandwich-sized ziplock bag. Cut a very small opening into one corner of the bag (smaller than the size of the opening of the rigatoni).
    Ricotta and mushroom filling ready to pipe into the rigatoni

Marinara

  • Heat a dutch oven or pot that is medium in size over medium heat. Add 1 tbsp olive oil and chopped onion. Cook onion, stirring occasionally, until it softens (6-8 minutes). Season with 1/2 tsp salt.
    Softening the onion
  • Add in crushed garlic cloves and dried oregano and cook for one minute, stirring constantly, until fragrant - about one minute. Stir in tomato paste and cook until it takes on a brick red color.
    Tomato paste added to the onion mixture
  • Pour in wine, deglaze pan, and allow the wine to reduce for 2-3 minutes.
    Red wine cooking off
  • Add bay leaves, tomatoes, parmesan rinds (if using) and another 1/2 tsp salt to the pot and stir to combine.
    Tomatoes added in and ready to cook down
  • Bring marinara to a simmer, reduce heat to medium low, and allow sauce to simmer gently for about one hour. Season with more salt as needed. After an hour, discard bay leaves and parmesan rinds and blend sauce with an immersion blender or in a high powered blender until smooth. Add sauce to a large oven-safe skillet (like cast iron) or a large dutch oven and set aside until ready to fill rigatoni.
    Marinara after blending

Rigatoni & Assembly

  • Heat oven to 350 F. Cook pasta 1-2 minutes less than package instructions (you want an al dente texture to keep the rigatoni from ripping - they will cook further in the final steps of the recipe in the oven). Strain and rinse with cold water, add to a large bowl and toss with 1 tbsp olive oil to keep the rigatoni from sticking together.
    Cooked rigatoni that has been cooled and tossed with olive oil to prevent sticking
  • One at a time, pipe filling mixture into each piece of rigatoni and arrange in a single layer in prepared skillet/dutch oven with pureed marinara until you run out of room (you want to nestle them into the sauce so they are mostly covered).
    Piping the filling into the rigatoni
  • Repeat with remaining pieces of rigatoni. Distribute half of grated parmesan over the stuffed rigatoni in marinara.
    Stuffed rigatoni raedy to hit the oven
  • Place skillet into the oven until cheese melts and begins to take on a light golden color- 20-25 minutes. Top with remaining grated parmesan and basil and serve immediately.
    Rigatoni after the bake in the oven
Nutrition Facts
Ricotta & Mushroom Stuffed Rigatoni Recipe
Amount Per Serving
Calories 718 Calories from Fat 216
% Daily Value*
Fat 24g37%
Saturated Fat 9g56%
Trans Fat 0.01g
Polyunsaturated Fat 2g
Monounsaturated Fat 11g
Cholesterol 81mg27%
Sodium 1122mg49%
Potassium 663mg19%
Carbohydrates 93g31%
Fiber 5g21%
Sugar 6g7%
Protein 29g58%
Vitamin A 629IU13%
Vitamin C 5mg6%
Calcium 267mg27%
Iron 3mg17%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Nutrition

Calories: 718kcalCarbohydrates: 93gProtein: 29gFat: 24gSaturated Fat: 9gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 0.01gCholesterol: 81mgSodium: 1122mgPotassium: 663mgFiber: 5gSugar: 6gVitamin A: 629IUVitamin C: 5mgCalcium: 267mgIron: 3mg
Keyword Ricotta & Mushroom Stuffed Rigatoni
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