Meatball Casserole Recipe

Meatball casserole with pasta in a baking dish with a spoon dishing up.

5 from 2 votes

No need to pre-cook the pasta to make this easy weeknight dinner of pasta and vegetarian meatballs. You just need 5 ingredients plus herbs and spices, and boom, you have a family-friendly comfort meal.

Prep Time10

Cook Time45

Total Time55

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: meatball casserole, pasta casserole, vegetarian casserole

Servings:

Calories: 278.4kcal

Author: Susan Pridmore

Ingredients

9 vegetarian meatballs make your own or purchase frozen
12 ounces marinara sauce or make your own tomato sauce
½ cup milk whole, 2% or oat milk
1 ¼ cups water use 1 ¾ cups at high altitude
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon dried oregano
¾ teaspoon Kosher salt
8 ounces uncooked penne or ziti pasta noodles
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

Instructions

Make the meatballs, or thaw from the freezer.
Preheat the oven to 425˚F.
Add the marinara sauce, milk, water, and all of the spices to an 8" X 8" baking dish. Whisk it all together. Add the uncooked pasta to the liquid, and the cooked meatballs.
Cover tightly with aluminum foil.
Bake on the middle rack for 35 minutes.
Reduce the oven temperature to 350˚F. Uncover the casserole dish and check the pasta for doneness. Recover with foil, and slide back into the oven, if it's not cooked enough for your preference.
If the pasta is al dente, sprinkle with mozzarella cheese, and grated Parmesan cheese if using.
Slide back into the oven for 10 minutes to melt the cheese.
All the casserole to cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.
(I finish mine with a light sprinkling of coarsely chopped parsley.)

Nutrition