Macaroni Pasta Bake
This Macaroni Pasta Bake is easy to make with ground beef, marinara sauce, pasta and cheese. Use elbow macaroni or any short pasta shape in this comforting baked pasta casserole.
Growing up, this macaroni pasta bake was one of my favorite dinners that my mom made for us. She called it Macaroni Meat Casserole, and as soon as I was old enough, she taught me how to make the recipe.
I’ve been making this macaroni casserole ever since. Cheesy, saucy pasta baked together with ground beef is a crowd-pleasing, no fuss dinner. Get more dinner ideas.
When life is feeling a bit overwhelming, cheesy baked pasta can be a perfect way to nourish both your body and soul. This macaroni pasta casserole is easy to make using just a few ingredients. The steps to prepare it are simple, and you won’t need to spend all day in the kitchen. This recipe is a great one to prepare early in the day and then bake in the evening right before dinner time.
One thing that I love about this recipe is that it makes enough to feed a crowd. Which means that my family can get a few meals out of this pasta bake. The best part? This baked pasta tastes even better on the second and third day after the flavors have had time to come together. Delicious leftovers are the best because it means you get a night off from cooking. 😉
When we’re craving some cheesy pasta comfort food, this easy pasta bake is one of our favorites.
More Easy Pasta Recipes:
- Stuffed Shells
- Macaroni and Cheese
- Baked Broccoli Mac and Cheese
- One Pot Baked Ziti
- Chicken Florentine
- Even more Pasta Recipes
How to make this Pasta Bake
I usually make this recipe with lean ground beef, but ground turkey or sausage would also work well. You can boost the nutrition of this pasta dinner by using whole wheat pasta and adding extra vegetables to the sauce.
The first step to making this is to boil the pasta. Adding a little salt to the pasta cooking water helps to flavor the pasta as it cooks. When the pasta is done, take a mug or measuring cup and scoop out some of the pasta cooking water before draining the pasta. The water has starches from the pasta and you’ll add about 1/2 cup of jarred or homemade marinara sauce.
While the pasta boils, sauté chopped onion and bell pepper in a skillet. If you want to add more veggies to your pasta bake, add them to the skillet now. Next you’ll add minced garlic and ground beef to the pan and cook until the beef is browned.
Stir in marinara sauce and the reserved pasta cooking water. Season with salt and pepper, and simmer everything together for about 10 minutes to develop the flavors.
Now it’s time to put everything together. After draining the pasta, return it to the empty pot. Pour in the beef and sauce mixture and stir to combine. Then stir in some shredded cheddar cheese. Transfer everything to a baking dish and sprinkle on some shredded mozzarella cheese.
Bake the casserole until it is hot and the cheese begins to brown, about 20 minutes. (Find the full recipe directions, including a list of ingredients and amounts, in the recipe box below.)
Freezer and Reheating Instructions
The easiest way to reheat leftover baked pasta is to heat it in the microwave. You can also put it in a 350° F oven, covered, and heat until hot. You can store baked pasta for up to four days in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
This pasta bake freezes well. To freeze after baking, let it cool completely and then freeze in an airtight container. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and then reheat as directed above.
You can also freeze the casserole before baking. Be sure to freeze it in an oven-safe baking dish. Thaw it in the refrigerator overnight and then bake it in your oven until it’s hot and bubbly.
Cooking Tips for Baked Pasta
- Be careful to not overcook the pasta when you boil it on the stove. You want the pasta to hold its shape in the casserole.
- Remember to reserve some of the pasta cooking water before draining the pasta. The starches in the water help the sauce to come together, but if you forget to reserve the pasta water you can use regular water.
- I like to use one 32 ounce jar of Costco marinara sauce in this recipe and find it to be the perfect amount of sauce. You can use any marinara sauce (store bought or homemade).
- If you don’t have elbow macaroni, any short pasta shape, such as rigatoni, penne or rotini will work in this recipe.
Macaroni Pasta Bake
Ingredients
- 16 ounces elbow pasta, or other short pasta shape
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup chopped yellow onion
- 1 bell pepper, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 pound lean ground beef, or ground turkey
- 32 ounces marinara sauce
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Lightly grease a 9x13-inch baking dish or other large rectangular baking dish.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to package directions for al dente. Be careful to not overcook the pasta. Reserve ½ cup of the pasta cooking water and then drain the pasta. Return the drained pasta to the pot.
- Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the onion and bell pepper to the pan and cook, stirring often, until the vegetables soften, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Add the ground beef to the pan. Crumble the beef and cook until it is browned.
- Pour the marinara sauce and reserved ½ cup of pasta cooking water into the skillet. Stir in the salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and reduce the heat to low. Simmer for about 10 minutes.
- Pour the meat and sauce mixture from the skillet into the pot with the pasta. Stir. Stir in the shredded cheddar cheese. Transfer the pasta mixture to the prepared casserole dish. Top with the mozzarella cheese.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the casserole is hot and the cheese is lightly browned on top. Let stand for 5 minutes and then serve.
Notes
- If you forget to reserve some of the pasta cooking water before draining the pasta, you can use regular water.
- You can substitute the ground beef with ground turkey or sausage.
- If you don't have elbow macaroni, any short pasta shape, such as rigatoni, penne or rotini will work in this recipe. You can use whole wheat pasta if you prefer.
- I like to use one 32 ounce jar of Costco marinara sauce in this recipe and find it to be the perfect amount of sauce. You can use any marinara sauce (store bought or homemade).
Thanks lot so tasty ..
Super good! Next time I’m gonna season the meat a bit (salt/pepper) and maybe add more meat but that’s just me 😛
Is there really only 1 pound of meat for this entire recipe? It seems like for the protein to be that high, there should be 2 lbs ??
Nutrition facts are an estimate. There is only 1 pound of beef but there is also significant protein from the cheese and pasta.
My husband LOVED this! I added a little extra seasoning but pretty much followed it exactly. Will make again.
Made it, loved it, will be making it again. I love the peppers and will be adding double the next recipe😊
Only thing I would change, if I could, is the high carb intake because I’m limiting my carbs for weight loss but I’m afraid it would mess up the entire meal and wouldn’t taste nearly as good. I’ll take the hit👍🏼
I had a 24 ounce jar of sauce I mixed in a can of fire roasted diced tomatoes ti make it up did not add bell peppers it turned out pretty good
Great recipe… Wish you would use metric measurements.
This was delicious! Granted I made plenty of adjustments but I used this recipe as the basis. I sort of doubled the recipe, added more Italian herbs, including fennel, and extra garlic etc. I didn’t have a fresh bell pepper and I didn’t miss it but I had a large white onion. All said, this is great. Add as you like and work around the recipe. I used a lb of ground mild Italian sausage and what I guess is a lb of ground beef. It was frozen and from a different recipe but similar recipe. I used the elbow mac and not quite doubled it, about 20 ounces of small elbow mac. I cooked it in chicken broth and I did not rinse. Just add a heaping tbl of butter or olive oil to keep it from being a big sticky mess. Try to remember the recipe for reserving the cup of cooking water from the pasta (I forgot). If you like to cook, and know what you’re doing you can make this easy and with your own add in’s, etc. I was low on cheese so I used half of a half of Velveeta cubed, some grated mozzarella and some grated parmesan and some sharp cheddar cheese. It was Devine!
My family loved this Mac dish. My husband is not a fan of leftovers but couldn’t get enough of this. Very easy and inexpensive. I suggest you make some today!
This is my go to recipe when I’m limited on time or needing to make dinner for guest. It is easy to put together and very good. I have also at times added cooked chicken to the recipe for something different. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe.
My family loved it! 🥰