Baked Tortellini

Baked tortellini is an easy dinner recipe that’s bursting with flavor! Throw the pasta and sauce in the pan and bake.

Looking for a cozy, easy dinner idea where you barely have to think? Try this Baked Tortellini recipe! This one is so simple, you don’t even have to boil the pasta. That’s right: throw the refrigerated tortellini into a dish with a tomato pasta sauce and top with melty cheese. It comes out bubbly and warm, with perfectly tender pasta pillows. This one was so simple, we’ve been making it on repeat. Here’s how to put it together!

What you need for baked tortellini

This baked tortellini recipe is one of those coveted pasta bakes where you don’t have to boil the pasta first. This makes it much quicker and simpler to put together! The key? Refrigerated tortellini or tortelloni pasta, which is fresh pasta that can cook during the bake time. Here’s what you’ll need for this recipe:

• Refrigerated cheese tortelloni pasta (or tortellini)
• Crushed fire roasted tomatoes (or best quality crushed tomatoes)
• Olive oil
• Balsamic vinegar
• Garlic powder, dried oregano, and kosher salt
• Water
• Spinach (optional)
• Whole milk mozzarella cheese
• Parmesan cheese
• Italian panko (optional)

Use refrigerated tortelloni (or tortellini)

This recipe is called “baked tortellini,” but the best pasta to use here is actually tortelloni! We prefer tortelloni since it’s larger, more tender, and more satisfying flavor-wise. The most important part when shopping for this recipe? Make sure it’s refrigerated, which means it’s fresh pasta (and will cook during the bake time). Don’t use dried pasta! Here’s the difference between tortellini vs tortelloni:

• Tortelloni is a pasta shape that is larger than tortellini with a filled center. Tortellini is smaller and ring shaped, with a hole in the middle. In traditional Italian cooking, tortelloni filling is vegetarian whereas tortellini often has meat. Tortellini is also often served in broth, whereas tortelloni is served with creamy sauces.
• Where to find it? Tortelloni is easy to find the refrigerated section at your local grocery. It’s usually not available dried or frozen (though you can find tortellini dried and frozen).
• How to tell the difference quickly? Tortellini has a hole in the middle, whereas tortelloni has a solid center that encloses the filling.
• Either way: don’t use dried pasta! You can make this recipe with refrigerated tortellini if you can find it! Just don’t substitute dried tortellini here because the weights are different.

Use fire roasted tomatoes if possible

The best way to pack flavor into the sauce in this recipe? Fire roasted tomatoes! This type of tomato is roasted over an open flame before canning, which makes a sweet and smoky flavor right out of the can.

Can’t find fire roasted tomatoes? Substitute the best quality crushed tomatoes you can find. If desired, you can also use a high quality marinara sauce instead! If you do, we suggest still adding the balsamic vinegar, garlic powder, and dried oregano called for in the recipe: it makes for the best homemade, fresh flavor.

Spinach is optional

You can add a little green to this tortellini bake if you like! Throw in some chopped spinach to the bottom of the baking dish, and it’s a tasty way to add additional leafy greens. However, it’s definitely not necessary for the flavor or texture of this dish. Even better, serve it with a side salad!

Ways to serve baked tortellini

This baked tortellini recipe works as both a vegetarian dinner recipe and as a side dish! If you’re serving it as a side, it pairs well with chicken, fish, or seafood. Here are a few ideas on how to serve it if you’re serving it as a main dish:

• Add a salad. Try it with Arugula Salad, Watercress Salad, Apple Salad, or Chopped Salad.
• Go for simple sauteed veggies. Go for Green Beans Almondine, Haricot Verts, Sauteed Broccolini, Best Ever Sauteed Kale or Sauteed Rainbow Chard
• Add more protein. Try Easy White Beans or Easy Cannellini Beans.
• Opt for bread. Use any crusty artisan bread, Garlic Toast or Easy Garlic Bread.

More easy dinner recipes

Looking for more easy dinner recipes? Here are a few quick and easy ideas:

• Go for Healthy Mac and Cheese with Broccoli or Cacio e Pepe
• Try Pesto Tortellini
• Grab Easy Blackened Tilapia or Jumbo Shrimp with Chimichurri
• Opt for quick Quick Chickpea Tacos

01

Healthy Mac and Cheese with Broccoli

02

Easy Blackened Tilapia

03

Pesto Tortellini

04

Quick Chickpea Tacos

This baked tortellini recipe is…

Vegetarian.

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