Honeycomb Pasta with Spinach & Mushrooms

5
Points®
Total Time
1 hr 15 min
Prep
45 min
Cook
25 min
Serves
8
Difficulty
Moderate
This pasta recipe is made by standing cooked rigatoni noodles upright in a springform pan so that they resemble a honeycomb from above. The noodles are individually filled with a creamy cheese mixture, then topped with tomato sauce, sauteed veggies, and lots of mozzarella. The whole thing goes in the oven on a sheet pan (to catch any drips) and bakes until the cheese is nice and gooey. This recipe is really where art meets delicious culinary creation, so have fun and don’t stress if it isn’t perfect.

Ingredients

Uncooked large rigatoni

2 cup(s)

Cooking spray

4 spray(s)

Baby spinach

3 cup(s)

Mushrooms

1½ cup(s), sliced, chopped

Bottled reduced fat pasta sauce

1¼ cup(s), tomato-basil flavor, divided

Part skim ricotta cheese

1 cup(s)

Plain fat free Greek yogurt

1 cup(s)

Table salt

¾ tsp

Garlic powder

½ tsp

Black pepper

¼ tsp, freshly ground

Shredded part skim mozzarella cheese

¾ cup(s)

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 375℉.
  2. Cook pasta according to package directions but for 1 to 2 minutes less than recommended (you want the pasta to be slightly undercooked). Drain; set aside until just cool enough to handle.
  3. Meanwhile, coat a large nonstick pan with cooking spray; warm over medium heat. Add mushrooms; cook, stirring occasionally, until starting to brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Add spinach; cook until wilted, another 30 seconds. Set aside.
  4. In a medium bowl, combine ricotta, yogurt, salt, garlic powder, and pepper; transfer to a pastry bag fitted with a small, round tip (or use a plastic bag with a small piece of the corner cut off). Refrigerate ricotta mixture (so it’s easier to pipe in step 6).
  5. Lightly coat a 9-inch springform pan with cooking spray; place springform on a sheet pan. Spread ½ cup tomato sauce in bottom of springform pan. Starting from the outside of pan and working in a circle toward the center, stand cooked rigatoni noodles upright so that they look like a honeycomb from above (noodles should be tightly packed).
  6. Pipe a small amount of ricotta mixture into each noodle to fill it (you may need to bang the pan on the counter as you go to help mixture settle in noodles). Spread remaining tomato sauce over top and cover with mushroom mixture; sprinkle with mozzarella.
  7. Bake until cooked through and cheese is golden, 25 to 30 minutes. Let sit for a few minutes before releasing and removing springform pan. Slice into 8 pieces and serve.
  8. Serving size: 1 piece