Let’s get real: pasta kind of rescues us. Baked, thrown with, sauced, or just tossed together using whatever you’ve got left in the fridge, pasta always rescues us. It’s comforting, reassuring, and infinitely adaptable and the wonderful thing about it is that you don’t need to possess a culinary school degree or have an inordinate amount of time in order to create something respectable.
We’ve compiled 15 of our best easy-to-make pasta recipes that are also satisfying. Below are the first seven to get you started.
1. Easy Ziti Bake
If you have a hankering for that baked, cheesy pasta thing, this ziti is your ticket. It’s filled with ground beef, tomato sauce, ricotta, mozzarella, and Parmesan the usual suspects, in the best sense of the phrase. Total cooking time is about an hour and a bit, but most of it is unattended.
Little trick: grate your Parmesan. Trust us, it’s worth it. You can also get fanciful with the filling mushrooms, zucchini, whatever is piling up in the crisper. Go without the beef if you’re making it vegetarian. This one’s easy to modify and even better the second day.
2. Three-Cheese Meatball Mostaccioli
This is for everyone who has ever been in the kitchen deliberating between spaghetti and meatballs and baked pasta. You don’t have to decide this has both. Meatballs, sauce, and baked pasta with ricotta and two others. It’s hearty and comforting and hits all the comfort food buttons.
Use fresh basil if you’ve got it. It adds just the right finish. And mostaccioli is perfect here because it grabs onto all that sauce.
3. Sausage and Swiss Chard Pasta
Orecchiette, sausage, and bitter greens are a classic combo for a reason, they just work. This version uses Swiss chard and mushrooms, and it’s done in about 30 minutes.
Fresh ingredients matter here. A good sausage and leafy greens go a long way. If you’re using farmers market stuff, even better. Just make sure to serve it right away so the pasta doesn’t soak up all the liquid.
4. Fettuccine Alfredo
There’s just no need to ever purchase Alfredo sauce in a jar after you’ve made your own. Butter, cream, and Parmigiano Reggiano are all you’ll ever need. A dash of nutmeg makes it better.
This one comes together fast 30 minutes. You can keep it straightforward or add in some cooked chicken, shrimp, or vegetables if you desire more to occur. Either way, it’s a good standard.
5. Sausage and Mascarpone Tortellini
Mascarpone may best famously appear in tiramisu, but it’s sort of magic in a pasta sauce. It dissolves into this silky, luxurious texture that makes the entire dish appear as though it took a lot more effort than it ever did.
You’re using pre-cooked tortellini, which means this comes together in about 20 minutes. Add sausage, stir in the mascarpone, and you’re basically done. It’s fast, it’s creamy, and it’s hard not to go back for seconds.
6. Garlic Spaghetti (Aglio e Olio)
This is one of those recipes that proves simple doesn’t mean boring. Spaghetti, garlic, olive oil, parsley, and Parmesan. That’s it. But when it’s made right, it’s kind of perfect.
The key is using good olive oil and not burning the garlic. Red pepper flakes are optional but highly recommended. Serve with a salad or some crusty bread and you’ve got a full meal.
7. Spicy Chicken and Tomato Pasta
Here’s a good one for cold nights or if you just need something with some kick. Chicken, tomato sauce, chicken broth, and spice it’s all fairly simple, but it all works pretty well together.
Dial in the heat to suit yourself. A spoon of sour cream at the finish brings everything together. Not fancy, just good food that does the trick.
The following eight recipes keep the energy going with even greater variety, from shrimp and pesto to baked spaghetti and lasagna loaded with vegetables.
8. Cajun Chicken & Pasta
This is creamy and spicy with the perfect amount of heat to keep things exciting. It incorporates Cajun seasoning, chicken, mushrooms, and peppers with cream sauce served everywhere penne.
Feel like changing it up? Substitute shrimp or Andouille sausage. Add more vegetables. Turn up the heat. It’s one of those recipes that is difficult to mess up and always a crowd favorite.
9. Vegetable Lasagna
You don’t need meat to make a meaty lasagna. This version features mushrooms, zucchini, squash, and homemade tomato sauce. The layers bake into a golden, cheesy casserole that’s even better the next day.
In a hurry? Substitute packaged ravioli for noodles. Either way is a decent delivery system for piling on the veggies and still accessing that lasagna comfort food.
10. Shrimp Pasta Primavera
This is the quickest of the bunch ready in about 15 minutes. It employs angel hair pasta (or capellini), shrimp, asparagus, and mushrooms. Fresh, light, and super convenient.
A squeeze of lemon holds it all together. It’s excellent when you want something light but not too light. You can substitute other vegetables, too, based on what you have in season.
11. Lasagna Roll-Ups
All the good stuff of traditional lasagna, minus so much effort. You put the filling onto cooked noodles, roll them up, and bake with sauce and cheese.
Use ground beef or be a veggie-lover. They’re also wonderful for meal prep make a few and freeze a few for another time. It’s a simple dinner with a lot of reward.
12. Mushroom Pasta Carbonara
A twist on basic carbonara, this adds mushrooms to the table. You still have the rich sauce, salty pancetta or bacon, and tons of Parmesan.
If you happen to have fresh mushrooms, use those, but jarred will suffice if you don’t have them on hand. It’s creamy, tasty, and on the table in half an hour.
13. Creamy Prosciutto Pasta
This one is a good fall-back when you desire something good without wanting to spend a lot of time. Fresh fettuccine, Alfredo sauce, mushrooms, spinach, and prosciutto. Dinner in 25 minutes.
Bacon is fine if you don’t have prosciutto. Throw in bread and salad and you’re set. It’s something that you might be able to get at a restaurant, but it’s surely doable at home.
14. Pesto Shrimp Pasta
This one’s bright, light, and ideal for summertime. Shrimp, asparagus, pesto, lemon, and spaghetti. It only takes 30 minutes to make and won’t get you down.
Substitute spaghetti squash or gluten-free pasta if you’d like to make it lighter. Red pepper flake adds a great kick, and a sprinkle of Parmesan sprinkled on top can’t be wrong.
15. Favorite Baked Spaghetti
This is comfort food at its retro finest, stick-to-your-ribs goodness. Spaghetti, ground beef, tomato sauce, and a rich topping of cottage cheese all hot and bubbly and baked.
If you’d rather mix things up, add some capers, olives, anchovies, or garlic to make it a puttanesca. Either way, it’s the type of dish that serves an army and freezes wonderfully.
Final Thoughts
Pasta is never going to be boring. From quick and easy to rich and comforting, the potential for variations is endless. Pick a few to try, then repeat favorites on end.
