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Easy Baked Ravioli – Just a few simple ingredients for a super easy, cheesy, and delicious dinner recipe the whole family will love.
This easy Baked Ravioli comes together in just minutes and is perfect for any night of the week. I love it because it makes enough for a crowd. So I can make it when we have family or friends over without a ton of work. It is one of my go-to recipes when I am going to be out of town too; that way my husband and son can eat a home-cooked meal the whole time I am gone!
What is your kind of comfort food? For me, it is either Indian food, chocolate desserts, or any kind of pasta. I think my husband would say pizza. And my son would say pasta skillet. I sense a pattern….carbs. No surprise there, carbs make pretty much everyone feel better.
So today I am combining all of our favorites into one dish. Cheesy, pasta, and spicy sausage all in a delicious sauce. Everything bakes together to get all gooey and yummy.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Ground Italian sausage– adds a flavorful depth of flavor that makes this simple dish taste like exhausted way more effort than you actually did preparing it. Use spicy or mild based on your taste preferences.
- Onion– The sweetness of the cooked onion helps to balance the saltiness of the marinara sauce to create the perfect bite.
- Garlic– Fresh garlic is highly recommended for this recipe. The intensity of the fresh garlic is a great way to compensate for the muted flavors of the jarred pasta sauce. The jarred stuff can be used if you are looking for a sweeter sauce.
- Italian seasoning– Gives a fresh herbiness to the marinara sauce without buying and chopping a ton of fresh produce.
- Marinara sauce– Feel free to make your own if there’s a recipe that you just love and you have a few extra minutes. In this version, I used premade pasta sauce to save myself a little extra time.
- Frozen cheese ravioli– Yes, that’s right. No hours spent making homemade pasta. For this recipe, the frozen variety bakes up just as tender inside of the pasta sauce as any homemade ravioli would. And, of course, any other variety of ravioli is optional.
- Mozzarella cheese– Makes this dish perfectly cheesy and melty without turning into a stringy mess at the dinner table. Look for a low-moisture variety for the meltiest cheese.
- Fresh Basil– This is only used to garnish the recipe, but it adds a lovely fresh flavor to any Italian dish and it is optional.
Can You Bake Frozen Ravioli Instead Of Boiling It?
Yes, you absolutely can. The pasta sauce in this dish serves the same purpose as water would if you were to boil the frozen ravioli. The pasta sauce will heat quicker than the frozen ravioli, and as soon as the temperature of the sauce is higher than the ravioli, it will begin to defrost and cook the ravioli. The bonus is that the pasta is now infused with saucey flavor.
To avoid crispy or rubbery ravioli when baking, make sure all parts of the ravioli are covered in sauce and cheese so that they are not overcooked before the dish is completely baked. Although if we are being honest, my husband loves the crunchy pieces that sometimes stick out.
How To Make Baked Ravioli
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and coat a large baking dish with cooking spray.
- Next, add the sausage and onion to a large skillet and break it apart with a spatula. Cook the sausage until it is no longer pink. Drain any excess fat from the skillet then add the garlic. Briefly saute until the garlic softens and becomes aeromatic.
- Stir the pasta sauce and Italian seasoning into the skillet with the garlic and simmer for 5 additional minutes.
- Then, spread a small amount of the sauce mixture over the bottom of the baking dish.
- Begin to assemble the baked ravioli. First, place a layer of ravioli over the pasta sauce inside of the baking dish. Second, pour 1/3 of the pasta sauce and 1 cup of cheese over the top. Next, repeat this process with the remaining ravioli, cheese, and meaty sauce mixture.
- Cover the casserole with foil and bake for 35-40 minutes or until the sauce and cheese become bubbly. Once it is bubbling, remove the foil from the baking dish and cook for an additional 5 minutes or until the cheese is melted and golden brown.
- Finally, remove the perfectly melty baked ravioli from oven and garnish with basil before serving. For best results, allow it to rest for a few minutes.
Tips And Tricks
- Use a different type of meat. Our family loves the spice and flavor of Italian sausage so that is our go-to for similar dishes. Feel free to swap out ground beef for an equally divine bite.
- Swap out the pasta. No ravioli in your freezer? No problem. You can also use frozen tortellini for a filling pasta dish the whole family is sure to love.
- Make it vegetarian. If you are between shopping trips or have someone in your family that prefers to a meat-free dish, simply omit the meat. The cheese filling and pasta makes for a delightfully comforting and hearty meal.
- Use a different type of ravioli. If you omit the meat in the recipe below, any variety of ravioli (think beef, sweet potato, chicken, turkey, seafood) will make a tasty main course.
- Double it up. Cooking for a large family or a crowd? If you can find a baking dish large enough, don’t be afraid of doubling the ingredients. This baked ravioli recipe is a crowd-pleaser, even when it’s served as leftovers.
- Mix up the pasta sauce. Not a fan of marinara sauce? Skip the red sauce and bake up your ravioli with alfredo sauce or a creamy pesto.
What To Serve With It
Serve with a salad or garlic bread and you have a complete meal the whole family will love, and it is even nice enough to serve to guests! If you’re looking to mix things up and serve something other than that traditional choice, try one of my other recipes that would pair well with this Baked Ravioli:
- Air Fryer Mushrooms
- Simple Tossed Salad
- Roasted Squash and Goat Cheese Salad
- Grilled Zucchini
- Sauteed Asparagus
Make Ahead And Storage
If you’ve ever enjoyed leftover spaghetti, you’re familiar with how delicious it is the next day. Giving the pasta a chance to absorb all of the flavors of the pasta sauce and Italian sausage overnight ensures every bite is packed with a savory punch. This baked pasta recipe is no different.
If you’re cooking for a smaller family or decided to double up the recipe, the extra will be just as delectable as the day you made it for 3-5 days in an airtight container stored in your refrigerator.
This dish also works well as a make-ahead freezer meal. All you need to do is layer the ingredients the same as you would if you were serving it immediately in a freezer-safe container that can safely transfer to the oven. Aluminum pans work great for this. To cook from frozen, place the frozen baked ravioli dish in the oven and cook at 400°F for an hour or until the center has heated throughout.
Want More Easy Dinner Recipes
- Beef Stroganoff Ravioli Skillet
- Ground Beef Lettuce Wraps
- Tomato Balsamic Ravioli
- Air Fryer Chicken Breasts
- Easy Skillet Lasagna
- Ranch Cheddar Chicken
- Goulash
If your family loves this easy Baked Ravioli recipe as much as mine does, make sure you share it with your friends so they can try it too. Don’t forget to Pin it so you can make it again soon.
Easy Baked Ravioli
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds bulk Italian sausage
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, , nced
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning
- 2 25 oz jars marinara sauce
- 2 18 oz bags frozen cheese ravioli
- 3 cups Mozzarella cheese, shredded
- Fresh Basil for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 13×9 inch baking dish with non-stick spray. Set aside.
- Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add sausage and onion. Break apart the sausage and cook until no longer pink. Drain any fat. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute.
- Stir in sauce and Italian seasoning, simmer for 5 minutes.
- Spread 1 cup of sauce mixture over the bottom of the prepared baking dish.
- Place 1 single layer of ravioli over the sauce. Pour 1/3 of the sauce and sprinkle 1 cup of cheese evenly over the top. Repeat with the remaining ingredients.
- Cover with foil and bake for 35-40 minutes, until bubbly. Remove the foil and bake for 5 minute until cheese is melted and golden.
- Remove from oven and sprinkle with basil to serve.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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This is a nice way of making a classic dish. Love how you did it. I will be adding this to my weeknight rotation of meals!
I can almost taste that right now! I love ravioli, and I love easy recipes. This is a big winner for me. I’ll be making this for the family this week.
We love this for an easy, weeknight dinner! It’s so delicious.
This is so comforting! Quickly became a favorite at my house!
This will be our new family favorite dinner. I love ravioli!
Hi! Wondering if I should shorten the baking time if I’m going to prepare it in the morning and keep it in the fridge until dinner time? Thanks!
You shouldn’t need to. You can cook it all the way and then just reheat at dinner. At dinner you will heat until it is just warm in the center, not actually cooking it further.