Baked Penne with Spinach, Ricotta & Fontina
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This easy vegetarian pasta bake gives you all the flavor of classic spinach and cheese cannelloni without the fuss.
This vegetarian pasta bake is a quick and easy riff on classic spinach and ricotta cannelloni. Instead of stuffing traditional pasta shells, I toss penne pasta in a creamy sauce made with spinach, basil, and ricotta. After topping the dish with two flavorful cheeses, I bake it until golden and bubbly. To ensure a smooth and creamy texture, I add mascarpone (or cream cheese) to the sauce, which eliminates any potential graininess that can sometimes occur with ricotta-based sauces. While the pasta bakes, I usually toss a big Italian salad to complete the meal.
you’ll need to make Baked penne with spinach, ricotta & fontina
how to make Baked penne with spinach, ricotta & fontina
To begin, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and add the penne. Cook until al dente, about 9 minutes. The pasta will continue to cook in the oven, so you want it a bit underdone.
Drain the pasta, then place it back in the pan and set aside.
Meanwhile, drain the spinach and squeeze as dry as possible. In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade, combine the dry spinach, basil, ricotta, mascarpone (or cream cheese), half-and-half cream, 1 cup fontina, 3 tablespoons Parmigiano Reggiano, salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
Process until puréed.
Add the spinach mixture to the pasta.
Stir to combine.
Transfer to a baking dish.
Top with the remaining fontina and Pecorino Romano cheese.
Bake until the pasta is bubbling and the top is golden in spots, about 20 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes, then serve.
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Baked Penne with Spinach, Ricotta & Fontina
This easy vegetarian pasta bake gives you all the flavor of classic spinach and cheese cannelloni without the fuss.
Ingredients
- 1 pound penne
- 1 (10-oz) package frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
- ½ cup packed basil leaves, roughly chopped
- 1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
- 4 oz (½ cup) mascarpone cheese (or cream cheese)
- 2 cups half-and-half
- 6 oz (2 cups) grated fontina or whole milk mozzarella, divided
- 5 tablespoons finely grated Pecorino Romano (or Parmigiano Reggiano), divided
- 2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F and set an oven rack in the middle position. Lightly oil a 9 x 13-inch ceramic baking dish.
- Cook the penne in boiling salted water until al dente, about 9 minutes. (It will cook more in the oven so you don’t want it completely cooked.) Drain and rinse under cold water, then place the pasta back in the pan and set aside.
- In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade, combine the spinach, basil, ricotta, mascarpone (or cream cheese), half-and-half, 1 cup of the fontina (or mozzarella), 3 tablespoons of the Pecorino Romano (or Parmigiano Reggiano), garlic, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Process until puréed.
- Add the spinach mixture to the pasta and stir to combine. Transfer to the prepared baking dish. Top with the remaining fontina and Parmigiano Reggiano. Bake until the pasta is bubbling and the top is golden in spots, about 20 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes, then serve.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Calories: 692
- Fat: 34 g
- Saturated fat: 20 g
- Carbohydrates: 65 g
- Sugar: 7 g
- Fiber: 4 g
- Protein: 31 g
- Sodium: 956 mg
- Cholesterol: 112 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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A nice easy recipe that we enjoyed but, for our palettes, needed a little bit more flavor. Possibly a stronger cheese to replace the Fontina… or maybe a more mature/better quality Fontina than I used (I opted for the less expensive of two that were available).
Hi there! Would it be okay to make this dish a day in advance? Thanks!
Sure, I’d assemble and refrigerate it and then bake right before serving. Enjoy!
I just wanted to to give one answer to the “can you freeze” question : I live alone but always cook full recipes and then freeze leftovers in individual portions – this freezes just fine. If you feel it is a bit dry, just add a little 1/2 & 1/2 when reheating.
This recipe is super tasty! It’s become a go-to and family favourite. I always add a bit of pesto to the sauce to give it some zing and I sauté mushrooms in butter to add in with the chicken. Yum!
Am I missing something? I couldn’t find chicken anywhere in the recipe, but the way you presented your post sounded like it was included. Went back to double check and still can’t find it.
Hi Joan, There is no chicken in this recipe. 🙂
This is a family favorite! Even my spinach-hating 7-year old gobbles this one down. If anything, I find the recipe a little bit soupy, so tend to add additional penne to balance things out, but this recipe is delicious, fast and popular, so is on regular rotation in our house.
Mine also came out quite dry unfortunately with company. Could not find Fontina so subbed in Havarti. May have overcooked by 5 minutes in order to achieve the “light brown” per instructions but I believe the recipe needs another cup of 1/2 and 1/2.
An excellent pasta dish! Everyone loved it!
An excellent pasta dish! So very yummy!
QUESTION: What would be the correct amount of dried basil to use, in place of the fresh? Would it mess up the recipe if I substituted dry basil?
Thanks much!
Hi CJ, Unfortunately, dried basil won’t work here. Sorry!
Hi Jenn!
Thank you so much for all of your incredible recipes!! We absolutely love every recipe of yours that we have tried!
I am planning to make this over the weekend, and I have only metal or Pyrex casserole dishes for baking. Would one of these options be okay to use?
Thank you so much!
Christy
Hi Christy, Thank you for your sweet note – I’m so happy you all are enjoying the recipes! I’d use your metal baking dish for this one to be on the safe side. While I’ve never had issues with baking Pyrex at high temperatures, I’ve heard some nightmare stories from readers. Please come back and lmk how it turns out :).
Thank you for the prompt reply, Jenn! This was absolutely delicious and turned out wonderfully in the metal pan. I covered it with tin foil for half of the time just in case, and it was perfect! We all went back for seconds! Thank you for another wonderful recipe!