Ricotta & Mushroom Stuffed Rigatoni Recipe
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.
Equipment
- 1 ovensafe skillet or large dutch oven
- 1 Blender immersion or other high powered blender
Ingredients
Marinara
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 white onion medium in size, roughly chopped
- 3 garlic cloves peeled and crushed
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1/4 cup red wine pick a red that you would drink
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 28oz can crushed or whole peeled tomatoes
- parmesan rind optional
- 1 tsp salt plus more to taste
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.
- 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.
- 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).
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.
- 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.
- Pour in wine, deglaze pan, and allow the wine to reduce for 2-3 minutes.
- Add bay leaves, tomatoes, parmesan rinds (if using) and another 1/2 tsp salt to the pot and stir to combine.
- 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.
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.
- 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).
- Repeat with remaining pieces of rigatoni. Distribute half of grated parmesan over the stuffed rigatoni in marinara.
- 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.
