If you love easy weeknight dinner recipes, then you’ll love this cheesy pesto tortellini bake with mozzarella. It’s creamy, cheesy, packed with pesto, and made with 5 basic ingredients!
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I have made this recipe so many times that I've lost count! It's one of my favourite recipes, and I'm obsessed with the pesto sauce (the colour, the flavour, the creaminess...everything)! My boyfriend asks me at least once a week if I can make it, and the answer is always a yes!
If you love pesto dishes, then you should try this pesto chicken rigatoni recipe too!
I've also got a ton of other pasta bake recipes you should check out too, like this chicken and mushroom pasta bake, mac and cheese pasta bake, Italian sausage pasta bake, baked spaghetti with cream cheese, and ricotta cheese and mozzarella pasta bake!
If you're looking for more tortellini recipes because you love how comforting and hearty they always are, then try this cheese tortellini and Italian sausage casserole, sausage and tortellini soup, and this chicken tortellini pasta salad too!
Why you’ll love this recipe
- COMFORTING & HEARTY: You know those cooler months when you just want something warm, cozy, and filling for dinner? Well, that’s exactly what you get with this delicious pasta bake!
- PERFECT FOR SHARING: This recipe makes a large portion of pasta and is perfect to make for dinner parties and share with your guests. If you aren’t planning to have anyone over, you can plan on having an easy lunch or dinner the next day with the leftovers!
- EASY: Simple to make with 5 basic ingredients!
This pasta bake is extremely approachable to make because it's made with just a few basic ingredients (no, you don't need to make the pesto from scratch but the pesto sauce is going to taste like you did!)
Cup of Flour prides itself on helping people make delicious food with simple, common ingredients that you may already have at home or can conveniently get at any local grocery store, and that's exactly why this recipe is simplified for anyone to make and for anyone (maybe most people) who can't find pine nuts to make pesto from scratch! To learn more about Cup of Flour, check out the About page!
Recipe Ingredients
- CHEESE TORTELLINI: This recipe uses frozen cheese tortellini, but there are a ton of tortellini versions, such as beef, prosciutto and cheese, rainbow tortellini, and more, so pick whichever you like and go with that!
- PESTO: Pesto can be made at home or easily found by many brands at the grocery store. This recipe uses store-bought pesto to keep things easy, but if you’re feeling creative, you can try making it yourself!
- MILK: 2% milk is used and makes it creamy. You can also use heavy cream if you want it even creamier, but 2% does makes it quite creamy on its own!
- FRESH SPINACH: If you’re not a huge fan of spinach, don’t worry; you can’t taste it! Spinach is used in this recipe simply to add more green colour to the dish and make it look pretty! You can typically find fresh spinach in the produce section of you’re grocery store in a bag or by the bushel.
- MOZZARELLA CHEESE: Mozzarella cheese is shredded and sprinkled over the dish, making it super cheesy and delicious. To make it even more cheesy and flavorful, serve it with parmesan as desired.
See the recipe card below for the ingredient measurements.
Kitchen Equipment
- LARGE POT: For cooking the tortellini pasta noodles.
- SMALL POT: For making the creamy pesto pasta sauce.
- KNIFE: For mincing the garlic.
- CUTTING BOARD: For chopping the garlic and protecting your countertops.
- CHEESE GRATER: For shredding the cheese.
- RECTANGLE BAKING DISH: A greased 9x13 baking dish is all you need for baking it.
- MEASURING SPOONS AND CUPS: For measuring the ingredients.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Prepare: Preheat the oven to 425° F. Grease a 9x13 rectangular baking dish and set it aside.
- Pasta: In a large pot filled with water, cook the tortellini per the instructions on the package (cook it for a couple of minutes less than specified). Before draining the pasta, reserve ¼ cup of the pasta water.
- Pesto Sauce: In a small pot, add the pesto and milk and bring to a boil on high heat, stirring occasionally. Add the reserved pasta water and simmer on low for 1 more minute. Remove it from the heat and stir in the spinach.
- Bake: Transfer the drained tortellini to a large bowl and pour the sauce over it, mixing until fully coated. Transfer the pasta to the baking dish, and evenly sprinkle the mozzarella cheese over the top. Bake the pasta for 10-15 minutes until the cheese begins to get bubbly and melt.
Expert Tips
- Cook the pasta for less time. The pasta is going to be cooked twice in this recipe; first, it's boiled, then baked. To ensure it's not overcooked, you should aim to boil the pasta for a couple of minutes less than specified on the package. If there's a suggested time range for cooking it, choose to cook it for the lesser amount because it still needs to cook while it bakes.
- Remove the pasta from the heat. Once you boil and drain the pasta and put it back into the same pot you boiled it in, you should remove it from the burner you originally cooked it on to avoid the pasta from continuing to cook or sticking to the pot.
- Frozen or fresh tortellini works. You can use either frozen or fresh tortellini in this pasta bake. You just need to follow the instructions on the package and boil it for slightly less than specified to ensure it doesn’t overcook when you bake it.
- Give the pasta bake time to rest. To avoid a runny pasta bake, give it at least 10 minutes to rest before cutting into it. The resting period will give the sauce time to thicken and make it easier to cut into.
Recipe FAQ’s
You can reheat pasta in the microwave at 1-minute intervals until it's hot enough, or pop the leftover baking dish in the oven at 375° F for about 10-15 minutes.
It is possible to overcook pasta bake, so the approach should be to slightly undercook the pasta before you bake it (when you pre-boil it) that way, it’ll finish cooking while it’s baking.
No, you should slightly undercook it before baking the pasta so it doesn’t overcook.
Since you precook it (boiling it first), it doesn’t need too much time in the oven to cook. It takes about 15 minutes, or until the cheese starts to get bubbly and the cheese is melted.
To reheat the pasta the next day, bake it in the oven at 375° F for 10-15 minutes or until warm enough.
After baking the pasta bake, you should give it some time to rest before cutting into it. This will give the pasta time to soak up and thicken the sauce.
There are lots of options to serve with pasta as a side dish. Some of the most common would be a fresh loaf of bread or a fresh salad.
You can store the room temperature leftover pasta bake in an airtight container or in the baking dish covered in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Alternative Ingredients
- Chicken: If you’re looking to add some protein to this casserole, chicken is a great option and pairs very well with the pesto and cheese in the dish. It can be fried, roasted, or grilled and mixed in with the boiled pasta and sauce prior to baking it in the oven.
- Feta: Consider adding some crumbled feta to the pasta mixture or sprinkling on top of the pasta bake prior to baking it for some tanginess and extra saltiness.
- Zucchini: Roasted or sauteed zucchini would be a delicious addition that would add a layer of freshness, sweetness, and smoky flavor to the pasta bake.
Serving Suggestions
Serve this dish next to a light side salad and serve with a delicious shareable appetizer like our classic tomato basil bruschetta or roasted cherry tomato bruschetta.
Print📖 Recipe
Cheesy Pesto Tortellini Bake with Mozzarella
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 8
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
This pesto tortellini bake is creamy, it’s cheesy, it's full of pesto, and it’s super hearty.
Ingredients
- Cheese Tortellini, Frozen: 28 Oz
- Reserved Pasta Water: ¼ Cup
- Pesto: 1.5 Cups
- Milk (2%): 1.5 Cups
- Spinach: 4 Cups
- Mozzarella Cheese, Shredded: 2 Cups
Instructions
- Prepare: Preheat the oven to 425° F. Grease a 9x13 rectangular baking dish and set it aside.
- Pasta: In a large pot filled with water, cook the tortellini per the instructions on the package (cook it for a couple of minutes less than specified). Before draining the pasta, reserve ¼ cup of the pasta water.
- Pesto Sauce: In a small pot, add the pesto and milk and bring to a boil on high heat, stirring occasionally. Add the reserved pasta water and simmer on low for 1 more minute. Remove it from the heat and stir in the spinach.
- Bake: Transfer the drained tortellini to a large bowl and pour the sauce over it, mixing until fully coated. Transfer the pasta to the baking dish, and evenly sprinkle the mozzarella cheese over the top. Bake the pasta for 10-15 minutes until the cheese begins to get bubbly and melt.
Notes
The pasta is going to be cooked twice in this recipe; first, it's boiled, then baked. To ensure it's not overcooked, you should aim to boil the pasta for a couple of minutes less than specified on the package. If there's a suggested time range for cooking it, choose to cook it for the lesser amount because it still needs to cook while it bakes.
Once you boil and drain the pasta and put it back into the same pot you boiled it in, you should remove it from the burner you originally cooked it on to avoid the pasta from continuing to cook or sticking to the pot.
You can use either frozen or fresh tortellini in this pasta bake. You just need to follow the instructions on the package and boil it for slightly less than specified to ensure it doesn’t overcook when you bake it.
To avoid a runny pasta bake, give it at least 10 minutes to rest before cutting into it. The resting period will give the sauce time to thicken and make it easier to cut into.
Nutrition facts are estimates only.
Scroll up to the full blog post for recipe FAQ’s and serving suggestions.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: lunch, dinner, pasta, casserole
- Method: stove top, bake
- Cuisine: american, italian
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Carlo says
Looks amazing, can't wait to try it!
Happy baking
Andrea says
Thank you! Let me know how it is when you try it 🙂