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Easy Cheesy Beautiful Pasta Skillet

Easy Cheesy Beautiful Pasta Skillet Yes, it’s earned all of these adjectives, and then some! Why? Well, this hearty weeknight dinner recipe packs all of the taste of lasagna into a super easy, super kid-pleasing, 30 minute meal.

What would you say if I told you that you could easily re-create the taste of lasagna… in a 30 minute weeknight dinner recipe on your stove top? Oh yes, you can! This Easy Cheesy Beautiful Pasta Skillet satisfies those lasagna cravings nicely, but with just a fraction of the time and effort.

Serving the cheesy pasta skillet

You’ll want to use a shaped pasta that’s not too big for this recipe. Farfalle (bowtie) pasta worked out really nicely, and is oh-so-pretty in the final dish. This is the exact cheesy, meaty dinner of my children’s dreams, I tell you…

looking down on a skillet full of mozzarella topped pasta

This one took me a couple of tries to get right, but no worries — even the experiments don’t usually go to waste in this house, and my eager teenage helpers took care of the earlier attempts. Everyone agrees, though: This latest effort wins. (And did I mention: EASY?!)

Oh, and — you can use your leftover mozzarella and ricotta in this easy ricotta frittata with spinach & mushrooms! Win-win.

Easy Cheesy Beautiful Pasta Skillet

easy cheesy pasta skillet ingredients

Ingredients

1 lb ground beef
1/4 of a medium yellow onion, diced
2 tsp minced garlic (about 4 cloves)
12 oz box of shaped pasta (I used farfalle)
2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
24 oz jar pasta sauce
8 oz ricotta
4 oz shredded mozzarella

Directions

Start salted water boiling for pasta, and chop your onion and garlic.

Brown the ground beef, onion, and garlic in a large skillet over medium-high heat until the beef is cooked through, breaking up as you go. Drain.

While the beef is cooking, shred the mozzarella (if not using pre-shredded) and cook pasta al dente according to package directions.

add sauce and cheese to the beef in the skillet

Reduce heat to medium low under the skillet. Stir the seasonings into the drained ground beef. Stir in the pasta sauce and ricotta, then continue to simmer the beef mixture over medium-low heat until the pasta is done (about eight minutes), stirring occasionally.

top with mozzarella and melt

When the pasta is done, drain and stir the cooked pasta right into the ground beef mixture. Top everything evenly with shredded mozzarella.

Cover the skillet. Continue to cook over medium-low heat for another five minutes to melt the mozzarella, then serve.

serve portions of the easy cheesy pasta skillet

Optional: Top with Parmesan and/or chopped fresh parsley, if desired.

Note: I used ALDI’s Reggano simply marinara sauce here, which I like because it’s flavorful, affordable, and contains no added sugars. Even with prepared sauce, though, I always like to punch things up a little with extra garlic and oregano.

Tastes like lasagna!

Easy Cheesy Beautiful Pasta Skillet — Yes, it’s earned all of these adjectives, and then some! Why? Well, this hearty weeknight dinner recipe packs all of the taste of lasagna into a super easy, super kid-pleasing, 30 minute meal; it's the perfect comfort food for a busy weeknight.

Do you have teenage boys in your house? I’m telling you: Make this one tonight. Seriously. Middle School Guy’s direct quote was “This tastes just like lasagna! I love it so much! Make it again tomorrow!” All righty, then, this recipe is definitely a keeper. Tastes like lasagna and done in 30 minutes? I’ll take it. This easy pasta skillet is the perfect comfort food for a busy weeknight.

Easy Cheesy Beautiful Pasta Skillet, printable recipe

Easy Cheesy Beautiful Pasta Skillet

Easy Cheesy Beautiful Pasta Skillet — Yes, it’s earned all of these adjectives, and then some! Why? Well, this hearty weeknight dinner recipe packs all of the taste of lasagna into a super easy, super kid-pleasing, 30 minute meal.
Course dinner
Cuisine pasta
Keyword 30 minute meals, farfalle, mozzarella, pasta, pasta skillet, skillet
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings 6 people

Ingredients

  • 1 lb ground beef
  • 1/4 of a medium yellow onion diced
  • 2 tsp minced garlic about 4 cloves
  • 12 oz box of shaped pasta I used farfalle
  • 2 tsp oregano
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
  • 24 oz jar pasta sauce
  • 8 oz ricotta
  • 4 oz shredded mozzarella

Instructions

  • Start salted water boiling for pasta, and chop your onion and garlic.
  • Brown the ground beef, onion, and garlic in a large skillet over medium-high heat until the beef is cooked through, breaking up as you go. Drain.
  • While the beef is cooking, shred the mozzarella (if not using pre-shredded) and cook pasta al dente according to package directions.
  • Reduce heat to medium low under the skillet. Stir the seasonings into the drained ground beef. Stir in the pasta sauce and ricotta, then continue to simmer the beef mixture over medium-low heat until the pasta is done (about eight minutes), stirring occasionally.
  • When the pasta is done, drain and stir the cooked pasta right into the ground beef mixture. Top everything evenly with shredded mozzarella.
  • Cover the skillet. Continue to cook over medium-low heat for another five minutes to melt the mozzarella, then serve.
  • Optional: Top with Parmesan and/or chopped fresh parsley, if desired.

Notes

I used ALDI’s Reggano simply marinara sauce here, which I like because it’s flavorful, affordable, and contains no added sugars. Even with prepared sauce, though, I always like to punch things up a little with extra garlic and oregano.

Recipes in the real world

weekly ALDI meal plans from Mashup Mom -- six complete dinners for four, $60 out the door! MashupMom.com, every Wednesday.

Be sure not to miss the free ALDI meal plans, which show you how to use these easy family recipes to meal plan affordably and realistically for your family. Or, find more recipe ideas with the Recipe Search!

Be sure not to miss the free ALDI meal plans, which show you how to use these easy family recipes to meal plan affordably and realistically for your family. Or, find more recipe ideas with the Recipe Search!

Recipe Rating




Alison

Saturday 21st of January 2023

This is our new favorite recipe! It was absolutely delicious. I did add some chopped spinach and I used medium shells instead of the bow ties. My whole family devoured it. Thank you so much for this great idea.

rachel

Wednesday 25th of January 2023

So glad you enjoyed! And spinach is a great addition -- I actually have a vegetarian version that uses spinach, too. :) https://www.mashupmom.com/easy-cheesy-vegetarian-pasta-skillet/

Elizabeth

Monday 16th of January 2023

Used my last two boxes of mac and cheese. Recipe is forgiving when using what you got.

Brandy Hays

Monday 20th of July 2020

Yum! My husband had seconds. I snuck in some spinach and used broken up lasagna noodles. So good!

Jonathan Barrow

Monday 13th of July 2020

Recipe was excellent, two adults, and a icky 12 year old loved it. Cooked on 7/13/2020.