Spaghetti noodles combined with seasonings & parmesan cheese, bakes into a crust filling with ricotta and meaty marinara sauce, and loads of mozzarella!
Prep Time30 minutesmins
Cook Time30 minutesmins
Servings: 6
Ingredients
Pasta Crust
8ouncesspaghetti pasta (cook according to directions)
2large eggs, beaten
1/4 cupParmesan cheese
2clovesgarlic, mixed
1/4teaspoonblack pepper
coupledashesof salt
Filling
1poundItalian sausage
2largeegg
1-1/4cupshomemade or store bought spaghetti/marinara sauce
3tablespoonstomato paste
1cupricotta cheese
3tablespoonsgrated Parmesan cheese
1-1/2cupsmozzarella or Italian cheese variety, grated
Slicedblackolives (optional)
Instructions
Spaghetti Pasta Crust
Beat the eggs, seasonings and cheese together in a large bowl and set aside.
Cook the pasta according to package, drain pasta and stir into egg/cheese while still warm.
Coat a 9-inch pie plate with olive oil or cooking spray and add the pasta mixture, slightly flattening the middle.
Filling and Assembly
Preheat oven to 350 F.
Beat eggs slightly and mix thoroughly into the Italian sausage (the egg makes the meat a little more tender). Cook the sausage mixture and drain off fat.
Add the marinara sauce and tomato paste to the meat and stir. , set aside.Assembly:Spread Ricotta in middle of pasta in pie plate
Onto the spaghetti crust, spread the ricotta cheese. Leave about 1 inch around edge of pasta crust exposed.
Sprinkle on Parmesan cheese. Top with meat/sauce mixture, spreading to cover ricotta.
Top with mozzarella and sliced black olives. Bake @ 350 for 25 to 30 minutes uncovered. Done!
Notes
For gluten free, use gluten free pasta. Brown rice pasta (like Tinkyada and Ronzoni) are my favorites as they don't turn to "mush" when cooked.