Four Cheese Baked Mostaccioli Recipe

Baked mostaccioli deserves to be on the weekly rotation — not because it looks fancy, more so because it looks tasty and really delivers on that promise. In this recipe, four cheeses combine with meat and tomato sauce, and the mixture is baked until it is bubbling and golden. It makes plenty to serve a crowd or to freeze for later. It’s the type of dish that will disappear and have people inquiring on how you made it.

Here’s your warning: this recipe is designed to fill two 9×13 pans. One is going to the table this evening, the other is going in the freezer. If you want only one pan, just cut the recipe in half, but do a full batch at least once to see how quick that second pan gets used.

Why This Casserole Works

• Four cheeses, all pulling different weight. Ricotta adds creaminess. Parmesan brings sharpness. Goat cheese cuts through the richness with a mild tang that keeps the whole thing from tasting one-note. Fresh mozzarella melts into stretchy, creamy pools on top.
• Heavy cream in the meat sauce matters. It smooths out the acidity of the canned tomatoes and gives the sauce a richness you won’t get from tomatoes alone.
• Undercooking the pasta by one minute is the move. It finishes in the oven and absorbs the sauce rather than turning mushy.
• It freezes incredibly well. Most baked pasta dishes go a little sad in the freezer — this one doesn’t, which is why the recipe is written to make two pans.
• Italian sausage plus ground beef is the right balance. All beef gives you a flat sauce. All sausage gets too greasy. Half and half is the sweet spot.

What to Know Before You Start

This is not an easy task to complete on a busy weeknight. This is a weekend afternoon project that rewards you with meals for the week. Plan for an hour of work. From start to finish that includes 30 minutes of cooking on the counter while the sauce is cooking and the oven is working.

You will require two 9×13 baking plates, or one large and one small casserole dish. If you want a deeper bake, a 2.5-quart Corningware casserole would work well. If you’re making one to bake tonight and one to freeze, read the make-ahead section before starting to assemble. The process for the freezer pan is a bit different.

Ingredients

Pasta and Meat Sauce

• 1 lb. mostaccioli pasta — Also called penne rigate. The tubes hold sauce in a way flat noodles don’t.
• 1/2 lb. Italian sausage — Bulk or removed from casing. Mild or hot depending on who you’re feeding.
• 1/2 lb. ground beef — 80/20 is ideal. Leaner beef dries out in the sauce.
• 1 small yellow onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream — Don’t swap this for half-and-half. It needs the fat content.
• 2 cans (14.5 oz. each) petite diced tomatoes
• 1 can (6 oz.) tomato paste
• 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning

Cheese Layer

• 1 carton (15 oz.) ricotta cheese — Whole milk, not part-skim. The texture is noticeably better.
• 1 cup shredded parmesan — Split: 1/2 cup into the cheese mixture, 1/2 cup on top at the end.
• 2 oz. goat cheese — Up to 4 oz. if you’re a fan. See note below.
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten — Binds the cheese mixture so it holds up during baking.
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 8 oz. fresh mozzarella, cubed — Fresh, not shredded. It melts into creamier pockets on top.

About the Goat Cheese

I get your concerns if you haven’t worked with goat cheese in a baked pasta recipe. The raw cheese has a really strong flavor that can be off putting. In a dish like this, the goat cheese flavor really won’t be that strong, and the dish will really be missing a layer of flavor complexity without it. I told my family about the goat cheese after they tasted it and called it a five star dinner, and they had no clue it was in the recipe. If your not certain, start with 2 oz. If you know you like goat cheese, go for the full 4 oz. log.

How to Make It

Step 1: Cook the Pasta

Pour a generous amount of salt into a large pot of water, cover, and place it on the highest heat setting to bring it to a boil. When the water is boiling, place the mostaccioli into the pot and set a timer for one minute less than what it says on the package. Your goal here is to make sure the pasta has a tolerant bite to it because it is not going to be to your liking until you finish the recipe, and it is going in the oven for that. Once the timer goes off, drain the pasta but avoid rinsing it; you need to keep the starch because it assists with the sauce absorption.

Step 2: Build the Meat Sauce

Set your oven to 350. Begin heating a large skillet or Dutch oven on Medium. Add the Italian sausage, ground beef, and onion. As the meat cooks, break it up into smaller pieces. Cook for about 8-10 minutes, until the meat is no longer pink and the onion is soft. Add the garlic and cook for an additional minute. After that, drain any excess fat.

Pour in the heavy cream, then let it simmer for 5 minutes, stirring now and then. Then, add in the diced tomatoes, tomato paste, and Italian seasoning. Mix to combine, and let it simmer for another 5 minutes until the sauce thickens enough to coat a spoon. Taste the sauce and add salt if it is needed.

Step 3: Make the Cheese Mixture

In a mixing bowl, add the ricotta cheese, ½ cup of parmesan, goat cheese, a beaten egg, salt, and pepper. Mix until smooth. Goat cheese can be in small pieces. It will blend in while baking.

Step 4: Layer and Bake

To coat the pasta with the meat sauce evenly, stir them together, and in your oiled 9×13 baking dish, place 3 cups of the pasta and sauce mix, and then spoon half of the cheese mixture on top and spread it out evenly. On top, place the rest of the sauce and pasta mix. Put it in the oven uncovered for 25 minutes at 350°F, or until the edges are bubbling. Before the remaining 5 minutes of baking time, sprinkle the top with the cubed mozzarella and the rest of the parmesan. Let it bake for 5 minutes before serving.

Helpful Tips

• Salt your pasta water well. It should taste noticeably salty — this is the only chance to season the pasta itself. Under-salted pasta makes the whole dish taste flat regardless of how good the sauce is.
• Drain the meat before adding cream. Italian sausage and 80/20 beef release a good amount of fat together. If you skip draining, the sauce gets greasy and the cream won’t absorb properly.
• The cheese layer doesn’t need to be perfect. Spreading ricotta over pasta is a little awkward — it won’t lie flat like a smooth sauce. Dollop it, spread it loosely, and move on. It distributes during baking.
• Taste the sauce before assembling. Much easier to fix seasoning now than after everything is baked together.
• The 5-minute rest is worth it. It helps the layers set and makes it significantly easier to portion clean servings.

Storage, Make-Ahead, and Freezer Instructions

Refrigerator

In an airtight container, your leftovers will stay good for 4 days in the fridge. For easy reheating, microwave individual portions. To reheat without drying it out, put a little water on the dish before microwaving. To reheat an entire dish, cover it with foil and heat in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes at 325°F.

Freezer (the whole point of the double batch)

Coat a piece of foil with cooking spray and lightly press it into the second baking dish before adding ingredients. Assemble the mostaccioli in the foil-lined dish the same way, but stop before adding the mozzarella and remaining parmesan. Those go on fresh when you reheat. Refrigerate the assembled pan a few hours or overnight until firm. Then, lift the foil out, wrap in two to three more layers of foil, label it, and freeze for up to 3 months.

To reheat from frozen, first thaw for 24 hours in the fridge. Then, let the dish sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. After that, bake the dish uncovered at 350°F for 30 to 35 minutes. Finally, add mozzarella and parmesan, and bake for an additional 5 minutes.

Make-Ahead (same week)

Assemble fully (without the fresh mozzarella) up to 24 hours ahead and refrigerate covered. When ready to bake, let it sit out for 30 minutes. Add 5 to 10 minutes to the initial bake time.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I taste the goat cheese in the finished dish?

Not really, and that’s the honest answer. The tang softens quite a bit when combined with ricotta and baked. What it adds is a subtle depth that makes the cheese layer flavour more complex than just ricotta and parmesan. Use the 2 oz. minimum if you’re timid. You won’t regret it.

What’s the difference between mostaccioli and penne?

Mostaccioli has smooth sides and penne rigate has ridges. Both will work here. When it comes to a dish this saucy, it doesn’t make a huge difference, so use whatever you have or whatever is cheaper at the store.

Why does the recipe use heavy cream in a tomato sauce?

The addition brings fullness to the sauce and tempers the acidity of the canned tomatoes and tomato paste. Without it, the sauce is sharper and thinner. Because of this, the sauce will coat the pasta rather than pool at the bottom of the bowl. It’s true that half-and-half is too thin to do the same work.

Can I use cottage cheese instead of ricotta?

You can. The texture will be a little looser and more granular because cottage cheese is more moist. If you do that, drain it through a fine mesh strai er for about 15-20 minutes prior to use to get rid of some of the extra liquid.

My sauce seems thin after simmering — what do I do?

Continue cooking for an additional 3 to 5 minutes without a lid. Each brand of petite diced tomatoes has a different amount of liquid. If it’s still too loose, mix in one more tablespoon of tomato paste. That should thicken it up quickly.

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