Rigatoni And Cheese Food

FIVE-CHEESE RIGATONI

Steps:

• Cook rigatoni according to package directions. , Preheat oven to 375°. In a large saucepan, melt butter. Stir in the flour, salt and pepper until smooth. Gradually stir in milk; bring to a boil. Cook and stir 1-2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in Swiss, fontina, mozzarella, 1/4 cup Parmesan and 1/4 cup Romano cheeses until melted. , Drain rigatoni; stir in cheese sauce. Transfer to a greased 13x9-in. baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan and Romano cheeses. Cover and bake 20 minutes. Uncover; bake 5-10 minutes longer or until bubbly.

ONE-POT CHEESY WHITE RIGATONI WITH PEAS FOR TWO

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the leeks, celery, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are softened and just starting to caramelize, 5 to 6 minutes. Stir in the garlic until softened, about 1 minute. Add the rigatoni and white wine and cook, stirring occasionally, until the wine has almost evaporated and is thickened, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Add the lemon juice, 1 1/2 cups water, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper and stir to combine. Cook, stirring frequently, until the liquid has almost evaporated and the pasta is al dente, 14 to 16 minutes. Add the lemon zest, peas, mozzarella, Parmesan, heavy cream, capers, rosemary, thyme, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a generous amount of pepper and cook, stirring, until the cheese is melted and the peas are warm, about 2 minutes. Divide between 2 serving bowls and garnish with celery leaves.

RIGATONI WITH SAUSAGE, SPINACH, AND GOAT CHEESE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Heat the oil in a large saute pan over medium-low heat. Add the onions and a pinch of salt and cook until translucent, about 4 minutes. Add the sausage and use a fork to crumble the sausage into the pan. Increase the heat to medium-high, and fully cook the sausage, adding some of the pasta water to deglaze the pan.
• Cook the rigatoni until just shy of al dente. Before draining, reserve about 1 cup of the cooking water.
• Add the pasta to the pan with the sausage, reserving the cooking liquid, and add the parsley. Add the spinach and tomatoes and cook, tossing, until the spinach has wilted. Add some of the reserved cooking liquid, if needed. Remove from the heat. Crumble the goat cheese with a fork and add it along with the Parmigiano-Reggiano. Add a bit more of the cooking liquid if needed and serve.

RIGATONI WITH FOUR CHEESES

Steps:

• Cook the pasta in boiling salted water according to package directions; drain,.
• Meanwhile, heat butter and garlic in a heavy, medium-sized saucepan and stir, over low-med heat, careful not to burn garlic. Stir in the cream, and continue stirring until heated.
• Stir in all of the cheeses; stir fequently until cheeses are melted.
• Remove from heat, and stir in the pepper, salt (if needed) and parsley.
• Place cooked, drained pasta in a large bowl and pour sauce over top. Toss to coat well. Serve immediately.

RIGATONI WITH RICOTTA CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°.
• Spray a 9x13-inch pan with Pam.
• Cook rigatoni as per directions on package; drain.
• Beat eggs in a small bowl.
• Stir in ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese and parsley.
• To assemble casserole:.
• Spread 2 cups pasta sauce to cover bottom of pan.
• Place 1/2 of the cooked rigatoni over sauce; top with 1/2 the ricotta mixture dropped by spoonfuls.
• Layer 1 cup mozzarella cheese, 2 cups pasta sauce, remaining rigatoni, and remaining ricotta mixture.
• Top with 1 cup mozzarella, remaining pasta sauce then the last 1 cup of mozzarella cheese.
• Cover with foil and bake 60-70 minutes until bubbly.
• Uncover and continue cooking for another 5 minutes until cheese melts.
• Let stand 15 minutes before serving.

CHEESY SAUSAGE RIGATONI

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook the rigatoni according to the package instructions; drain and set aside to cool.
• Saute the onions in the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat until golden, 3 to 4 minutes. Crumble in the sausage, add the crushed red pepper and cook for a couple of minutes. Add the marinara sauce, mix everything together and cook for 5 to 7 minutes. Set aside to cool.
• To assemble, add about 2 spoonfuls of the sauce--just enough to coat the bottom--to a baking dish. Then layer half of the cooled noodles, half of the mozzarella cubes and half of the remaining sauce. Repeat the process: layer the remaining noodles, mozzarella and sauce, then top with the Parmesan. Cover and put in the fridge or freezer until ready to cook.
• When ready to cook, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Cook the rigatoni until heated through and bubbling, 25 minutes straight from the fridge, or 2 hours straight from the freezer. Garnish with minced parsley before serving.

RIGATONI WITH CHICKEN AND GORGONZOLA CHEESE

Steps:

• Sprinkle chicken with a 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper.
• Heat oil 1n a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook, 1 1/2 minutes per side, until edges are light brown. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring, until softened, 2 to 4 minutes. Stir in cream. Cook until mixture is reduced by half, about 3 minutes. Stir in 1/4 cup Gorgonzola and Parmesan. Simmer, stirring, 1 minute more, until cheeses melt. Stir in remaining salt and pepper.
• Toss hot pasta with sauce and divide among 4 serving plates. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup of Gorgonzola and parsley.

RIGATONI WITH MEAT AND CHEESE SAUCE

Steps:

• To make the meat sauce, heat the oil in a large frying pan and fry the beef for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until browned all over. Add the onion to the pan and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Stir in the garlic, tomatoes, herbs and tomato paste. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer for about 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, to make the cheese sauce, melt the butter in a small saucepan, then add in the flour and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
• Remove the pan from the heat and gradually pour in the milk, stirring constantly. Return the pan to the heat and bring to a boil, stirring the mixture occasionally, until creamy and thickened.
• Add the egg yolk, cheese and seasoning, and stir until the sauce is well blended.
• Preheat the broiler. Meanwhile cook the pasta in plenty of salted boiling water according to the instructions on the package. Drain thoroughly and turn into a large mixing bowl. Pour the meat sauce over and toss to coat.
• Divide the pasta among four flameproof dishes. Spoon over the cheese sauce and place under the grill until brown. Serve immediately, garnished with fresh basil.

RIGATONI WITH SPICY TOMATO AND CHEESE SAUCE

Steps:

• Melt butter in heavy large skillet over medium-low heat. Add flour and stir 3 minutes. Gradually whisk in milk and chicken broth. Bring to boil, stirring frequently. Add tomatoes, red pepper flakes, pepper and oregano and simmer 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to low. Add cheddar and 1 cup Romano and stir until melted and well blended. Pour sauce over rigatoni. Toss thoroughly. Serve, passing additional Romano separately.

ITALIAN CASSEROLE (RIGATONI AND CHEESE WITH TOMATO SAUCE)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook rigatoni according to package directions until al dente; drain.
• Combine tomato sauce with seasonings, and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minuntes.
• Add sauce to pasta and toss to coat.
• In a baking dish, arrange pasta and cheese in layers, ending with cheese.
• Pour melted butter over all.
• Bake, covered, for 15 minutes.
• Uncover, and bake for another 15 minutes.
• To freeze: Undercook pasta by a minute or two. Assemble dish as directed. Wrap with plastic wrap and then foil. Label and freeze.
• To serve: Thaw in fridge. Remove plastic wrap and recover with foil. Bake as directed for 20 minutes. Then uncover and bake 15 more minutes.

TASTY CROCKPOT CHEESE BAKED RIGATONI (YOU WILL BE USING A PAN TO

Steps:

• Dice your onion. (if you have a gadget that dices veggies it comes in handy, use small grater option to chop onions. If you don't have such a gadget, then hand dice onions).
• In a large skillet on medium heat start cooking all the meat, as it starts to cook, break up the meat into bite size pieces. Add 1 T. of olive oil. You don't want to totally break the meat down. (Using grass fed beef it's easy to keep meat in bite size pieces) After some of the meat has been broken up (a wooden spoon does a great job), lower heat a little and add onions to the meat mixture. Add 1/2 of your salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder. Cook until no more pink is seen. You want the meat chunky but not too big. No need to drain. Turn stove to low and let the seasonings marinate together while you move to next step.
• Dice your red pepper and slice your mushrooms. (I use more mushrooms at times). Mince your garlic.
• Add 1 T. olive oil into the skillet, turn heat to medium and as it's warming up add your garlic. Cook for just a minute or 2 when the temp reaches medium, stirring often. (don't let garlic burn) Add red pepper, mushrooms and chilli flakes. Stir often and saute until pepper and mushrooms are al dente.
• Add meat mixture to your crock pot. (6 quart) and add remaining salt, black pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, basil (or Italian seasoning). Add 2 jars of Paul Newman's sauce, stir well and cook on high for 1 1/2 hours. (check sauce after 1 hour and taste it, adjust seasoning and cover and cook for remaining 1/2 hour).
• Meanwhile, cook pasta as directed but cook to Al Dente only about 8-9 minutes. Drain and put pasta back in pan and drizzle the remainder of olive oil (or to taste) on pasta and mix well. Pasta will cook a little more in crock. (do not rinse pasta or it won't grab the sauce) (you can add a bit more olive oil if needed so pasta isn't sticking. You don't want mush).
• After sauce has cooked 1 1/2 hours in the crock, taste your sauce make any adjustments if needed. Add 3/4 of the cooked pasta and stir well. The pasta will soak up some of the sauce so use your judgement. If you like your pasta a little saucy then you won't need to add the full box. (I like a balance and used 3/4 of the cooked pasta).
• Option: Cook for 1/2 hour on high. This allows the pasta to blend with the sauce BUT YOU CAN OMIT this step and move on to the next steps. (If you don't use all the pasta you can freeze it in a freezer bag and use it to add to soups, stews or whenever you find a need for some pasta).
• Add 2 cups mozzarella cheese, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese and mix well. This will allow some of the cheese to melt into your pasta.
• Top it all off with remaining cheeses. On high, cook until cheese is melted to your liking on the top. About 15 - 20 minutes. Take lid off crock pot, turn it off and let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes to set. Serve. (You can serve with a salad and garlic bread). This will taste like you slaved making sauce all day but instead you allow the crock pot to bring all the flavors together.
• Tips: If you prefer a more saucy mixture, only cook 3/4 of the box of Rigatoni or 12 oz. and make adjustments as needed to your preference.(as I mentioned I cook entire box and make adjustments when I add pasta to sauce) This dish is great for company, a game day or just to feed your family. I hope you enjoy.
• VARIATIONS: Once you make this recipe you can make several adjustments to change it up using the basic sauce mix. You can use Penne pasta, shell pasta, any pasta that will mix well with the sauce and cheeses. I love all kinds of cheese but in this dish I prefer the cheeses mentioned. If you wish to add more cheeses then you can use any that melt like the Mozzarella cheese does. Mild to medium Cheddar, Pepper Jack, Provolone etc. It will change it's flavor. Also you can even use filled firm pastas. You can use tortellini, ravioli or any frozen pasta of your choice. Don't pre-cook it. Move frozen pasta from freezer to fridge. Follow recipe and add the pasta without pre-cooking. Be gentle stirring.and let pasta cook in sauce until Al Dente. Then move on to the adding the cheeses in order written.