Greek Pasta Casserole

JanuaryBride's Note:

If you like olives, feta, tomatoes and pasta, then you'll love this comfort food! A twist on my baked ziti recipe. Beware that it makes a LOT of food. I usually divide it amongst 2 casserole dishes, cooking one and freezing the other for an easy dinner another night. Enjoy!

• Total Time: 1 hrs 5 mins
• Prep Time: 30 mins
• Cook Time: 35 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 8

• 1 lb elbow macaroni , cooked al dente
• 1 lb browned ground beef
• 15 ounces ricotta cheese
• 4 ounces crumbled feta cheese
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 tablespoon dried onion flakes
• 2 (8 ounce) cans diced tomatoes , drained
• 2 cups marinara sauce
• 12 chopped kalamata olives

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Mix ricotta, egg, garlic powder, oregano, onion flakes, 4oz feta and mozzarella in a large bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, mix beef, tomatoes, olives, 1.5 cups marinara sauce and pasta.
4. Grease the largest casserole dish you've got. . LOL. . .you can do a 9x13 and a pie plate or two 8x8s, whatever you choose. In each casserole dish, layer pasta mixture, then top with some of the cheese mixture, then more pasta mixture and more cheese mixture.
5. Top with 1/2 cup (or more) marinara sauce and bake for 30-35 min, or until hot& bubbly.

Reviews

[newmama]

Super easy and tasty. I used cottage cheese instead of ricotta and added wine to the meat mixture. I also added cinnamon for a more greeky flavor. I would even add more marinara and wine next time as the noodles really soak up a lot!

[Leggy Peggy]

Excellent and easy-to-make casserole. We added some diced red onion, chopped bell pepper and extra olives. Also stirred all the sauce into the pasta, rather than adding some to the top. This barely fit into a 2.5-quart bowl. The olives and feta make this casserole special.

[Mercedes'_Spencer's_Mommy]

very easy recipe to make. my husband liked it too. The only think is maybe next time I will add a little more olives; this is just a personal taste for us. thanks january bride