Baked Rigatoni Bolognese

This recipe is sex in a pasta dish. Sorry not sorry to start it out that way.

But really. You take my rich, meaty Bolognese and pour it over cheesy rigatonis and bake it until it’s bubbling and beautiful. Sure, it’s going to be a labor of love.. but it’s so worth it.

Bolognese is one of the biggest love affairs of my life. I’ve been tweaking and working on my recipe for years, using several different kinds of pork and beef to see what I love most. So, when this recipe came together, Bolognese baked into a cheesy oasis? As Ron Burgandy said – do me on it.

So, you do you on choosing your meats for this knockout. I went with thick cut bacon and ground beef for simplicities sake, but if you want to really impress the people, opt for pancetta and short ribs. A roast is great in Bolognese too; just prepare your sauce as directed, put the whole, raw (but not frozen) roast inside the sauce and make sure it’s totally covered with liquid, and let cook away all day. You won’t be sorry. Use beef stock if you need extra liquid to ensure your chunk of meat is completely covered.

If you’re really new to making Bolognese, fear not. Read my post here in its entirety before you get started just to give you a lay of the land. I promise it’s not hard, it’s just a lot of chopping veggies and moving parts until you get it all into the pot together.

With meals like this, I always recommend getting your ingredients out and measured into bowls so you’re Johnny-on-the-spot when it’s time to throw that ingredient in. Deglazing a pan is a sensual art, but it happens quick so you need to be prepared.

What’s great about this baked dish compared to regular Bolognese is it doesn’t need to cook all day long (but it totally can). You can throw the sauce together after work, let it set on the stove with what time allows, or just immediately add it to the noodles once the sauce has came together and get it in the oven.

You could even make the sauce OR the whole dish the day before, sans cooking, wrap it up tight once it’s totally cooled and put in the fridge. Come home from work the next day and you’ve got a beautiful meal to pop in the oven! Do the hard parts on a Sunday and then you’ve got Monday Night Dinner totally covered.

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Baked Rigatoni Bolognese

Ingredients:

For the Bolognese Sauce

1 lb. hamburger meat

4 strips thick cut bacon

1 onion, diced

2 celery stalks, diced

2 carrots, peeled and diced

4 garlic cloves, minced

Butter (unsalted Kerrigold is my favorite)

Salt or anchovy paste

Red pepper flakes

Tomato paste (I love Trader Joes’s tubes of Tomato paste!)

Balsamic vinegar

Beef broth

1- 28oz can peeled San Marzano tomatoes

For the Rigatoni:

1 box Rigatoni noodles

2 eggs, beaten

2/3 C. Heavy cream

1 ½ C. Mozzarella cheese

½ C. Parmesan cheese

¼ C. Pecorino cheese

Directions:

1. Brown your hamburger meat.

2. Dice your onion, celery & carrots.

3. Drain your hamburger meat and add bacon. Remove, leaving grease.

4. Add butter. Sautee veggies until translucent, about 10 minutes over medium heat.

5. Add garlic and salt, stir until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.

6. Add tomato paste and red pepper flakes, stirring 1-2 more minutes.

7. Deglaze with 1-2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar.

8. Add 1 cup beef broth and 1- 28oz can of San Marzano tomatoes. Turn heat up and bring to boil.

9. Add your hamburger and bacon back, and reduce your heat to a low simmer. Cook for 1 hour minimum.

10. Preheat oven to 350.

11. Cook your pasta in salted water until al dente, usually about 1 minute less than what is on the box. Move to a large bowl.

12. Mix egg and heavy cream, add mixture and cheeses to the noodles and stir well.

13. Pour noodle mixture into a large baking dish, and then pour Bolognese sauce over the top. Grate additional parmesan and pecorino over the top.

14. Bake for 45-55 minutes, or until the cheese on the top is bubbling.