Baked Meatball Penne
This cheesy and savory baked meatball penne is quick and easy to make, and the perfect hearty dinner for a busy night!
Can I just say that moving is kind of the worst? I mean, it's very exciting that we own a home now, and we're in a great location, close to my husband's work and my kids' schools. And it has been really fun to work on projects to make our house the way we want it. But this nonsense of unpacking, and living in chaos, and not knowing where anything is - it totally sucks! I've been unpacking and organizing one room at a time, but I'm coming rapidly to the conclusion that we own WAY too much stuff! I'm thinking that we need to have a major purge shortly, and donate or sell a lot of stuff. With all the chaos from moving, cooking has not been at the top of my priority list, so we've mostly been living off Trader Joe's frozen meals and whatever else I can throw together at dinner time. This baked meatball penne is the perfect easy dinner if you, like me, have very little time, energy, or willpower to cook dinner.
Since my food options are fairly limited right now, I've been forced to get a little more creative with recipes. I had a bag of meatballs in the freezer, and rummaged around in a few boxes until I found some penne pasta and a jar of marinara sauce. This pasta took maybe 15 minutes of hands-on time, then baked into a big pan of cheesy goodness in about 20 minutes. Easy peasy, and super delicious!
This baked meatball penne seriously could not be easier to make, and everyone in my family loved it!
Baked Meatball Penne
1/2 pound penne pasta
8 ounces frozen meatballs (half of 16 ounce package)
1 16 ounce jar marinara sauce
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons panko bread crumbs
Preheat the oven to 350. Cook the pasta according to the package directions until al dente. While the pasta is cooking, add the meatballs and marinara sauce to a large skillet and heat until the meatballs are warmed through. Stir in the cooked pasta and 1/2 cup of the mozzarella cheese. Pour the pasta into a 9 x 9 baking dish, and sprinkle with the remaining mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, and bread crumbs. Bake 20 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is melted. Serve hot.
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