Extra Cheesy Tortellini Bake — Three-cheese tortellini baked with pasta sauce AND three more cheeses!! Cheese lovers will adore this easy baked tortellini casserole that’s ready in 30 minutes!!
Cheesiest Baked Tortellini Casserole
My refrigerator could be confused as a small cheese shop because at any given time I have at least 20 types of cheese.
Multiple different types of blue and brie, aged cheddar, white cheddar, extra sharp cheddar, gouda, gorgonzola, goat, mozzarella, parmesan, pecorino, swiss, and on it goes. And I can’t help myself from buying new kinds.
If you love cheese as much as I do, you’re going to love this very easy and extra cheesy tortellini pasta bake that’s ready in 30 minutes.
I boiled three-cheese tortellini (parmesan, pecorino, and ricotta) and as soon as they were done, I put them in a bowl with a big dollop of mascarpone cheese and let it melt. It seeps into the crevices of the tortellini and is so wonderful.
The mascarpone-coated tortellini are tossed with pasta sauce and topped with parmesan and mozzarella before being baked to golden, bubbly perfection.
Ingredients in Cheesy Tortellini Bake
To make this quick and easy recipe for baked tortellini, you’ll need the following ingredients:
- Refrigerated cheese tortellini
- Mascarpone cheese
- Pasta sauce (feel free to make homemade marinara, if desired)
- Parmesan cheese
- Mozzarella cheese
- Fresh basil and / or parsley (optional, for garnishing)
How to Make Baked Cheese Tortellini
The steps for this tortellini pasta bake are simple. Here’s an overview of the recipe:
- Cook the tortellini according to package directions, then drain and transfer to a large bowl.
- Add the mascarpone and stir until all of the mascarpone has melted and tortellini are evenly coated.
- Add the pasta sauce and stir to coat evenly.
- Transfer tortellini and any sauce to an 8×8-inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray. Evenly sprinkle over the parmesan cheese and mozzarella cheese.
- Bake uncovered at 350ºF or until the cheese is melted and as lightly golden browned and bubbly as desired.
Recipe FAQs
If you’ve never worked with mascarpone cheese, sometimes called Italian cream cheese, it’s reminiscent of very well-softened American cream cheese, but it’s smoother, lighter, and more heavenly.
You could probably get away with using regular cream cheese in this baked tortellini casserole recipe, although I haven’t tried it.
Yes! You can use any flavor of tortellini that you’d like. I used 3 cheese, but any kind will work (so long as it’s the refrigerated type and not the dry tortellini found on the shelves!).
Yes! You can prep it up to 2 days in advance and bake it off when you’re ready. It makes a good-sized batch, which is great for planned leftovers. And the leftovers freeze well for busy nights when pulling something from the freezer is a lifesaver.
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Extra Cheesy Tortellini Bake
Three-cheese tortellini baked with pasta sauce AND three more cheeses!! Cheese lovers will adore this easy baked tortellini casserole that's ready in 30 minutes!!
Ingredients
- one-20 ounce package (1 pound 4 ounces) three-cheese tortellini (spinach, sausage, etc. tortellini may be substituted), cooked according to package directions
- 1/3 cup (about 3 ounces) mascarpone cheese, softened to room temp
- 2 cups red pasta sauce (I used a basil-infused sauce)
- 2 ounces (about 1/2 cup) parmesan cheese, finely grated
- 8 ounces (about 2 cups) mozzarella cheese, finely grated
- 1 tablespoon fresh Italian flat-left parsley or fresh basil, finely minced for garnishing, optional
Instructions
- Cook tortellini according to package directions, drain, transfer to a large bowl, add the mascarpone, and stir to encourage the mascarpone to melt. Stir until all mascarpone has melted and tortellini are evenly coated.
- Add the pasta sauce and stir to coat evenly.
- Transfer tortellini and any sauce to an 8×8-inch baking dish sprayed with cooking spray.
- Evenly sprinkle the parmesan cheese.
- Evenly sprinkle the mozzarella cheese. If desired, cover with foil and at this point you can refrigerate for up to 2 days before baking or bake now.
- When you’re ready to bake, preheat oven to 350F, and bake uncovered for about 15 minutes, or until cheese is melted and as lightly golden browned and bubbly as desired.
- Prior to serving, optionally garnish with parsley or basil. Serve immediately.
Notes
Extra tortellini will keep airtight in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 4 months. Reheat leftovers gently as necessary.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 529Total Fat: 24gSaturated Fat: 13gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 89mgSodium: 1083mgCarbohydrates: 52gFiber: 3gSugar: 5gProtein: 25g
More Easy Pasta Bakes:
Three Cheese Baked Ziti — Mozzarella, fontina, and parmesan melted together are divine!! An easy, make-ahead meal that’s also freezer-friendly and so tasty!
Chicken Parmesan Pasta Bake — A hearty comfort food casserole that includes juicy chicken, pasta, marinara, the BEST crispy buttery breadcrumb topping and TWO types of cheese!!
Cheesy Beef and Pasta Casserole – Hearty comfort food that’s EASY and IRRESISTIBLE!! Cheesy pasta and beef coated in marinara sauce and topped with more CHEESE! Makes planned leftovers and is freezer-friendly!!
Pizza Pasta Casserole – EASY, ready in 20 minutes, and for times when you want BOTH pizza AND pasta!! Ground beef, pepperoni, and oodles of cheese make this casserole pure COMFORT FOOD! Feeds a crowd!!
Cheesy Chicken Artichoke Pasta Bake — Imagine spinach and artichoke-flavored PASTA spiked with juicy chicken, red peppers, and TWO types of melted cheese!! A family favorite big-batch COMFORT FOOD PANTRY RECIPE that’s great for meal prepping!!
Cheesy Ground Beef Pasta Casserole — Hearty comfort food that’s EASY and IRRESISTIBLE!! Cheesy pasta and beef coated in marinara sauce and topped with more CHEESE! Makes planned leftovers and is freezer-friendly!!
Baked Chicken Alfredo — Hearty Italian-inspired comfort food! Fettuccine noodles are tossed in a homemade alfredo sauce, topped with chicken, baked, and then finished off with crispy crunchy breadcrumbs!
It makes it really appetizing.
I will try Extra Cheesy Tortellini Bake in my free time. It seems very delicious. :)
Ohh wow looks so jummi :)
Is there a way to sub the mascarpone cheese cheese?
Haven’t tried it so can’t say for sure. Maybe cream cheese but honestly the mascarpone is really wonderful in this recipe and adds so much that I wouldn’t skip it.
One of my new favorite recipes! I couldn’t find mascarpone cheese in my food-barren college town, so I had to get creative and use a tiramisu trick to replace it. Cream cheese, heavy whipping cream, and sour cream, mixed together and heated slightly. It curdles a bit but makes heavenly “cheater mascarpone” in a pinch. Definitely in support of more cheese-heavy recipes. I’m a bit of an addict myself, hahaha! c:
I love your cheater mascarpone! Wow, that’s impressive! In this recipe, because it’s not a fussy recipe that you need to be ultra precise, I bet a mixture of sour cream and cream cheese, whisked together, then added in, would have been just fine. But throw in some heavy cream and heat, and you’ve got a winner! Glad this is a new favorite for you!
Okay, I am not crazy but… I would love to live with you :D your meals are looking amazing. Also, you are cooking my favourite meals baked pasta, sweets, cakes, muffins. How do you stay in form? And baked pasta is my favourite! Can’t wait to try this one. May be tonight :)
I am in full support of ALL THE CHEESE. Keep those 20+ kinds of cheese coming.
This looks delicious!
This looks soon good! Especially now that it is getting colder – bring on the comfort food!!
New recipe up on my blog for an adult-take on rice krispie treats, perfect for halloween!
xoxo http://www.touchofcurl.com
What beautiful cheesy goodness!
I have made these a few times now, and Tom likes them as well. There are 2 of us so they might last a week. Making more tomorrow.
Wow, I love cheese as much as you do . These look so delicious. I love the cheese, but it makes me fat.
30 different cheeses? Dang girl I’ll be over in a bit with some crackers and a bottle of wine. ;)
You can never have too much cheese though, this looks like ooey gooey perfection!
I said 20 not 30 :) I honestly do think I have about 20. Not quite 30, but hey, that’s something to work towards :)
I love your bright blue pan, funny I got actually 1 skillet and a dutch oven from Le Creuset this weekend in the exact same color :) oh and by they way I am loving the cheesy overload you have here!
I love blue and turquoise baking pans and cookware! Something about that color family just makes me happy! Congrats on your new LeCreuset Dutch oven! That is a major purchase – congrats!
Mascarpone cheese is soooo good!!! It makes a meal almost decadent in my opinion. My husband uses it in a few dessert recipes with honey & mascarpone. Amazing!
honey & mascarpone = an amazing combo!!
Another perfect recipe!! Tortellini is my FAVORITE!
It is awful-nasty-cold-rainy today. I love sunshine, so I am displeased about this. On the positive side, though, it gives me such an appetite and desire to cook cozy foods. This, my friend, is An Official Cozy Food. I love tortellini because it’s cheesy, and you’ve taken it to a new level of cozy bliss. <3
An Official Cozy Food = totally right with that! This is the type of meal you want with weather just as you described. Hope the sun comes out soon!
OMG!!!! My family will love this Averie!
So easy and makes extra for leftovers, i.e. makes mom’s job easier the next day!
I love love love mascarpone, but don’t use it very often. And I can tell already that my kids are going to flip for this extra cheesy pasta
I love it too, so much, and don’t use it often but after this recipe, I’m going to use it more!
This tortellini looks amazingly delicious! I want to try it out soon!
Paige
http://thehappyflammily.com
This looks delicious! I have 3/4 of a shelf in my refrigerator dedicated to cheese. I can’t wait to make this dish!
I think our refrigerators are twins :)
Hey Averie! This recipe looks great, but one problem: red pasta sauce is listed in the ingredients, and I can’t find the step to add it in.
Thanks for noticing that! That’s what happens when I type up recipes too fast! I just updated it and the sauce comes in at Step 2. Enjoy!
I would say the majority of my grocery bill is produce and cheese…This recipe is perfect comfort food at its best. I have a weakness for tortellini its my all time favorite pasta. This is happening this week.
LMK if you try it! And our grocery bills are the same! Except mine also includes a fair amount of adult beverages :)
Can totally identify with you on the refrigerator being a cheese shop girl, my love of that stuff runs DEEP!
This bake looks totally ooey gooey…and something that I want to DEVOUR for dinner!
My love for cheese is ridiculous. Like crazy! Sounds like we are the same with our cheese love!
Tortellini is probably Jon’s favorite pasta because of the cheese inside! I’ve never used mascarpone before but this recipe looks like a great reason to buy some. I hear you on the whole cheese thing…. I love trying new types also!
You are going to love mascarpone and be addicted to cooking and making sauces with it. It is SO SMOOTH. Like velvety smooth. Just divine.
Me and Trader Joe’s cheese wall, well, it’s my favorite thing to go do there is buy new cheese!
Hi, where did you buy your mascarpone cheese? I can’t find it anywhere…(*I have access to the same grocery stores as you do)
This looks amazing :)
Ralph’s. My Vons also sells it too. Whole Foods is a guarantee but more pricey. Ask the deli people because it’s not always kept right where other cheese is kept. And some stores have cheese stashed in like 3 separate places in the store!