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    Baked Mostaccioli

    January 23, 2025

    Baked pasta lovers gather round for our easy baked mostaccioli recipe. It’s filled with meat, a rich red sauce, and covered in shredded mozz. Need we say more?

    Baked Mostaccioli in a baking dish
    Photography by Gayle McLeod

    Looking for more pasta dishes from The Modern Proper?

    Our Best Baked Mostaccioli Recipe

    If you’ve made our Baked Ziti, Baked Ravioli, Baked Gnocchi or Chicken Tetrazzini, you probably already appreciate the simple beauty of an easy baked pasta recipe. It’s comforting, filling, and goes best with bread (either Garlic Bread or Rhodes Rolls) and a big salad (like our Caesar Salad or The Kale Salad). To round out the comfort food vibes, we recommend eating on the sofa with your favorite show, cozy pants a plus.

    ground italian sausage, mostaccioli, ground beef, marinara, cream, mozzarella, spices, onion and parsley in prep bowls

    Ingredients For This Easy Baked Mostaccioli

    • Mostaccioli – What is the difference between baked ziti and mostaccioli? Ziti has straight edges, and mostaccioli has angled edges. Ziti is a tad larger than mostaccioli. They can be used interchangeably for this recipe if you cannot find mostaccioli at the store.

    • Ground Italian sausage and 90/10 ground beef

    • Yellow onion and garlic

    • Jar marinara sauce, store-bought or homemade

    • Canned crushed tomatoes

    • Heavy cream

    • Kosher salt and Italian seasoning

    • Grated mozzarella cheese

    • Fresh parsley

    ground mild Italian sausage, ground beef, onion, and garlic being cooked in a pot
    marinara, crushed tomatoes, salt, Italian seasoning & cream being added to a pot with Italian sausage, beef and onions
    pasta sauce made with Italian sausage, ground beef, onion, cream, onion, garlic and spices in a large pot
    cooked Mostaccioli pasta being stirred into pasta sauce in a large pot

    How To Make Baked Mostaccioli

    1. Cook the pasta. Need tips for How to Salt Water for perfect pasta?

    2. Cook the sausage, ground beef, onion, and garlic in a Dutch oven or large pot. You’re looking for the meat to be cooked through and the onion is softened.

    3. Make it saucy. Add the marinara, crushed tomatoes, salt, Italian seasoning, and heavy cream. Stir in the drained mostaccioli until combined.

    4. Cover with cheese and bake. Transfer the pasta to a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Evenly sprinkle the pasta with the mozzarella and bake!

    5. Serve sprinkled with fresh parsley.

    Cooked Mostaccioli and pasta sauce being spread into a 9x13 baking pan
    Cooked Mostaccioli and pasta sauce spread into a 9x13 baking pan topped with mozzarella cheese

    How to Store Leftover Mostaccioli + Tips

    • Make ahead. You can prepare this mostaccioli dish in advance. Make as directed up until the step where it calls to bake. Cover it with cling film and tin foil and store in the refrigerator or freezer.

    • Because this is so freezer-friendly, it makes for a great meal train recipe!

    • If you can’t find mostaccioli noodles, ziti (as mentioned above) or penne will work instead.

    homemade baked Mostaccioli topped with melted mozzarella cheese and sprinkled with parsley in a 9x13 baking pan

    More Pasta To Love!

    homemade baked Mostaccioli topped with melted mozzarella cheese and sprinkled with parsley in a 9x13 baking pan
    homemade baked Mostaccioli topped with melted mozzarella cheese and sprinkled with parsley being scooped out of a pan

    More Great Bakes

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    Baked Mostaccioli Recipe

    Updated January 23, 2025

    • Serves:  8
    • Prep Time:  35 min
    • Cook Time:  45 min
    • Calories:  553
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    Ingredients

    • 1 pound mostaccioli
    • ½ pound ground Italian sausage
    • ½ pound 90/10 ground beef
    • 1 cup diced yellow onion, (1 medium onion)
    • 4 garlic cloves, minced
    • 1 (24-ounce) jar marinara sauce, store-bought or homemade
    • 1 (24 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
    • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
    • 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
    • ½ cup heavy cream
    • 2 cups grated mozzarella cheese
    • Minced fresh parsley, for serving

    Method

    1. Preheat the oven to 350°F with a rack in the center position.

    2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Once the water is boiling, add the mostaccioli and cook until al dente according to the package instructions. Drain and set aside.

    3. Meanwhile, heat a second large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the sausage, ground beef, onion, and garlic. Cook, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, until the meat is cooked through and onion is softened, about 10 minutes.

    4. Add the marinara, crushed tomatoes, salt, Italian seasoning, and heavy cream. Cook, stirring, until fully incorporated, about 3 minutes. Stir in the drained mostaccioli until combined.

    5. Transfer the pasta to a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Evenly sprinkle the pasta with the mozzarella, then cover loosely with aluminum foil. Bake for 25 minutes, then remove the baking dish from the oven. Uncover and bake for another 15 minutes, or until the cheese is lightly browned and the sauce is bubbling. Let cool for 5-10 minutes.

    6. Sprinkle with parsley and serve family-style.

    Nutrition Info

    • Per Serving
    • Amount
    • Calories 553
    • Protein 26 g
    • Carbohydrates 54 g
    • Total Fat 27 g
    • Dietary Fiber 5 g
    • Cholesterol 78 mg
    • Sodium 1131 mg
    • Total Sugars 5 g

    Baked Mostaccioli

    Questions & Reviews

    Join the discussion below.

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    • Kristy

      Im making this in an 18x26 pan so I doubled the ingredients and I'm assembling this a day ahead of time and refrigerating overnight. Please tell me the adjusted time for baking. Also do I need to spray the pan with non stick?
      By the way the sauce is DEElicious!

      should bake roughly the same amount of time. We'd recommend letting it come to room temp before putting it in the oven. A little non stick spray never hurts!

    • Keisha

      My husband and daughter whipped this up for a church potluck and it was amazing! Easy and delicious are my favorite things!

      YAY! Glad it was enjoyed, thanks Keisha!

    • Dana

      This was very simple to make and a great easy way to liven up store-bought marinara sauce. I served it to a few friends that were coming over and we all loved it. Thanks for making me look like such a good cook!

      Thanks Dana, that is what we are here for!