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This Easy Cheesy Baked Tortellini is simple and delicious too. Tortellini, bacon, cheese, basil, & spinach fill this recipe and make it irresistible and perfect for dinner any night.
Baked pastas are my jam! There’s something about putting all the ingredients in a casserole dish and baking it that creates the best flavor. Whether it’s this baked tortellini, baked spaghetti, or a chicken alfredo bake, it’s always a winner in our house.
extra Cheesy Goodness
Who here loves an easy dinner recipe? We are all about them and have realized that pasta recipes are the kids’ favorites. Today’s recipe is a Cheesy Baked Tortellini that the whole family enjoyed.
We’ve always loved Tortellini and have used it in so many recipes here on the site (including our Italian Tortellini Soup and Tortellini Salad). We knew we’d love this recipe considering that it’s covered in cheese, bacon and spinach. And because the tortellini is already filled with cheese, it’s kind of a no-brainer to love this double-cheesy baked tortellini goodness.
Make and bake
We’ve already established the fact that Cheese Tortellini on it’s own is delicious, and turning it into an even cheesier, more delicious dinner idea is going to earn you major kudos with the family. Here is how you make baked tortellini casserole.
TORTELLINI. Cooking tortellini as directed on the package.
SAUCE. Cook bacon and cut up. Reserve bacon fat from pan. Add garlic and cook for a minute or two. Add flour to the pan and whisk for a minute, then add milk and mix until smooth. Lastly, add salt, pepper, lemon juice and basil and bring to a simmer.
COMBINE. Drain tortellini and add back to the pot. Turn to low heat and add spinach and most of the mozzarella, Parmesan cheeses and bacon. Add sauce and stir until well combined.
BAKE. Add to an 8×8 or 9×9 dish. Top with the remaining mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese and bacon. Cover your dish with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake for an additional 5 minutes.
What can I use instead of bacon? If you’re not a fan of bacon you can substitute it with another meat such as ham, pepperoni, italian sausage, chicken, turkey bacon, sauteed shrimp. Also, the recipe calls for saving the bacon grease. Since you will not have bacon grease to use when sauteing the garlic use 1-2 Tablespoons of olive oil.
Make it ahead!
As if this recipe wasn’t already amazing, the fact that it’s a perfect make ahead meal is even better! Just follow the recipe steps up until it’s time to bake. Cover with with plastic wrap and keep in the fridge for 1-2 days then bake. To freeze: Cover with plastic and again with aluminum foil. Label and freeze for 3-4 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge and bake.
We really hope you love this cheesy, flavorful baked tortellini. We know you can buy tortellini with meat inside, so we think we’re going to try that next time. Either way, it’s a keeper recipe for sure. 😉
For more Cheese Tortellini recipes, try:
- Italian Tortellini Soup
- Cheesy Garlic Tortellini Pasta
- Tomato Tortellini Soup
- Spinach And Tortellini Salad
- Steak And Tortellini Salad
Cheesy Baked Tortellini recipe
Ingredients
- 1 12 oz. cheese tortellini package (or any kind of tortellini)
- 4 bacon strips
- 3 tsp. minced garlic
- 2 TB all-purpose flour
- 2 cups milk
- 3/4 tsp salt
- pepper
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 2 cups frozen spinach, chopped
- 3/4 cup mozzarella cheese grated
- 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese grated
- 2 tsp lemon juice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Add tortellini and cook as directed on the package.
- Cook bacon and cut up. Reserve bacon fat from pan. Add garlic and cook for a minute or two. Add flour to the pan and whisk for a minute. Add milk and mix until smooth. Add salt, pepper, lemon juice and basil and bring to a simmer.
- Drain tortellini and add back to the pot. Turn to low heat and add spinach and most of the mozzarella, Parmesan cheeses and bacon. Add sauce and stir until well combined.
- Add to an 8x8 or 9x9 dish. Top with the remaining mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese and bacon.
- Cover your dish with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake for an additional 5 minutes. Serve and enjoy!
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Very smooth taste, not at all spicy. I paired it with roasted chicken breast and peas.
In the video it shows fresh spinach, but the recipe calls for frozen spinach. If I wanted to use fresh spinach how much should I use?
You could use two heaping cups of spinach and it should be enough. If you love spinach, you could add a little more as it will cook down a bit in the oven.
Delicious
Thank you! So glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Looks better then it tastes. Not much flavor. More garlic, bacon, salt, maybe heavy cream
I’m sorry the recipe didn’t turn out as well as you had hoped. Thanks so much for sharing your suggestions!
This was great. I added Ground itLian sausage.
Question. Once it has been baked can i Freeze It or does it not freeze well after baking. Thanks
So glad you liked it! I haven’t tried freezing it, after it’s been baked, but if you are, I would cover with plastic wrap & aluminum foil & freeze. Thaw out & bake. I wouldn’t know an exact time, since it’s already been baked & I haven’t tried.
Used turkey bacon, skim milk and shredded Cheeses instead of grated. Loved it !
Sounds perfect! Thank you for sharing that! I will have to try that sometime 🙂
Easy and super tasty …I added some chicken witch did not need it but I had it to add so I did , definitely will make again!
Great idea!! Glad you liked it! Thank you for letting me know!
Made this recipe many times. All my guests and family. Want to know if this could be frozen either after fully cooked or before
I think it could before or after. If it is before, I would thaw it a little or it may need a little more time 🙂
Havent made this yet – do you thaw spInach ahead of time or add to pan with cheeses frozen? Im just cOnfUsed based off the instructions. Thanks!
I like to just thaw it a little & I wrap it in a towel & squeeze it, to drain it, then chop. Hope that helps!
Who doesn’t love tortellini?!
Right?! I know I do! Thank you!