Kitchen notes · a little help before you start
Cheesy baked tortellini
Tortellini already has a little filling to enjoy in each bite, and bubbling tomato sauce makes it even more inviting. Soft pockets of mozzarella settle around the pasta, with fresh basil on top.
- Prep
- 5 min
- Cook
- 25 min
- Total
- 30 min
- Original yield
- Serves 8
- Ingredients
- 10 listed
Make it part of your week
Recipe categories & planning details
- Meal type
- Dinner
- Cuisine
- Italian
- Preparation & total time
- Prep: 15 minutes or less · Total: 30 minutes or less
- Dish type
- Pasta
A few quick notes
1. Soften onion before garlic
Saute the onion until soft and translucent before adding crushed garlic, followed by the herbs.
2. Reduce the tomato sauce a little
Let the seasoned crushed tomatoes cook until the sauce has reduced slightly before adding tortellini.
3. Watch for floating tortellini
Cook the frozen tortellini in salted boiling water until it starts floating to the surface.
Get to know the ingredients
Fresh mozzarella chunks
Break the fresh mozzarella into chunks for placing over the pasta and sauce in the casserole dish.
Crushed garlic
Crush the garlic cloves before adding them to the softened onion at the start of the sauce.
Finely chopped basil
Use finely chopped fresh basil with oregano in the sauce, keeping the fresh basil finish for serving.
Let’s make it
Choose your servings, then check things off as you go.
Original recipe: Serves 8. Original quantities shown.
Check ingredients as you prepare them. These checks stay on this page.
How to make it
0 of 10 steps completeMake room for Cheesy baked tortellini
Review ingredients in your pantry before anything is added. Meal plans use your household size; grocery-only additions use the servings selected above.
The last little job
Finish with fresh basil
Remove the dish once the cheese melts and sauce bubbles, top with fresh basil and serve.
A little more help as you go
Lift pasta into the sauce
Use a slotted spoon to transfer the cooked tortellini into the tomato sauce before moving everything to the casserole.
Bake only after assembly
The tortellini and sauce go into the dish before mozzarella is added for the final oven stage.
A few questions you might have
Does the tortellini go into the oven frozen?
Boil the frozen tortellini first until it starts to float, then combine it with the sauce before baking.
When do I add the oregano?
Add it with basil after the garlic, giving the herbs their brief cook before pouring in tomatoes.
What tells me the bake is finished?
Look for melted mozzarella and bubbling sauce before taking the dish out and finishing with fresh basil.
Is shredded mozzarella used here?
Use a fresh mozzarella ball, added in chunks over the tortellini and tomato sauce.
Where do salt and pepper go?
Season the tomatoes after pouring them into the skillet, before the sauce's short reducing cook.
Storage & reheating safety
For cooked, perishable leftovers, refrigerate within 2 hours (1 hour above 90°F), using shallow containers for prompt cooling. Keep the refrigerator at 40°F or below, use refrigerated leftovers within 3–4 days, and reheat hot leftovers to 165°F, checked with a food thermometer. Follow any shorter package limit.
These are general safety limits, not a tested storage or freezing recommendation for this particular dish. USDA leftovers guidance · Safe cooking temperatures
Recipe source: simply-delicious-food.com. Ingredient names and quantities may be adapted for the pantry.
Preparation notes follow the recipe shown here.
