Pasta Bake: Ravioli with Fresh Tomatoes and Spinach

---

Ravioli Bake with spinach - a one dish meal packed with greens, cheese, pasta and flavorful tomatoes. An easy weeknight dinner everyone will love.

---

Baked pastas are one of my favorite, crowd-pleasing, go-to dinners. I can use homemade or jarred sauces, add veggies or not, and make a lot or a little. They are easy and always delicious. This one is no exception!

Quick-click table of contents:

Jump to:

• Spruced-up semi-homemade dinner
• Cooking time for baked pasta
• Fresh or regular mozzarella
• Baked Ravioli with Spinach and Charred Tomatoes

Baked pasta dishes are really my kind of casserole. A one-dish meal where separate ingredients come together in melty goodness. I love how often the pasta cooks right in the sauce, so it absorbs that extra tomato flavor.

Incredibly easy to make!

I have more tasty one-dish meals on TaraTeaspoon.com that make dinner easy. This delicious Coconut Fish Curry is made right on the stove in ONE skillet. Just a few ingredients make a coconut curry sauce you’ll want to drink! Your family will be thrilled with the new dinner lineup.

Spruced-up semi-homemade dinner

I wanted to make this baked ravioli a bit more special than a dump-and-cook situation, so I added some charred grape tomatoes for a tangy, caramelized bite.

I also threw in fresh basil. If you don't have that on hand, or didn't grab it at the store, chances are you have a jar of dried basil in the pantry. Use that!

Just stir 1 teaspoon of dried basil in with the marinara. It's an extra boost of flavor.

Adding some baby spinach is a go-to. For me it’s a way to get some veggies into dinner without having to make a separate side dish. Here I added some shredded basil to the greens for a pop of herby flavor.

Why char tomatoes?

Charring the tomatoes before adding them to the casserole brings out the sweetness and adds a little sophistication. Just throw them under the broiler for a few minutes.

Everything gets mixed together in one dish for this ravioli bake! I cover it to cook so the pasta doesn’t dry out.

Cooking time for baked pasta

It only takes about 30 minutes to simmer in the oven and heat through. About 10 minutes before the end of the time, uncover the dish and add your cheesy goodness layer. Melt the top and you’re ready to enjoy.

Fresh or regular mozzarella

I used fresh mozzarella because my market had it available. It melts in glorious white piles and has that distinct chew of fresh mozz.

You can use regular, shredded mozzarella in place of the fresh.

What kind of ravioli to use:

Any cheese ravioli will be delicious. I use the bag of non-brand frozen ravioli I find in the freezer section. Some stores will just have packets of fresh ravioli in the cheese section, and those will work too!

Feel free to change things up and use a meat or mushroom ravioli in place of the cheese variety.

How to make baked ravioli:

1. Heat broiler with oven rack 6 inches below. Line the bottom of a 2-quart baking dish with foil and add grape tomatoes. Broil until tomatoes are just soft and skin is charred, about 5 min.
2. Remove the foil and tomatoes and set aside; set the oven to 400ºF.
3. In the baking dish, toss together the charred tomatoes, ravioli, spinach, basil, marinara and the mozzarella. Cover with foil and bake until cooked through, about 25 minutes. Uncover, sprinkle with extra mozzarella and the Parmesan and bake another 10 minutes until the cheese is melted.
4. Serve with extra Parmesan and French bread on the side.

Recipe and Food Styling by Tara Teaspoon. Originally published on the iHeartNaptime blog 09/16