Rigatoni Pie

Ingredients

1 lb. rigatoni

2 tsp. canola oil

1/2 medium onion, grated

1 can (28oz) crushed traditional or fire roasted tomatoes

1 tsp. sugar

1/2 tsp. garlic salt

1/2 tsp. dried oregano

1 1/4 lbs. lean ground beef

1 large egg, lightly beaten

8 oz. (2 C.) shredded Italian cheese blend or part-skim mozzarella

2 tbsp. grated Parmesan

chopped parsley (optional)

Directions

1) Heat oven to 400 degrees. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add rigatoni & cook 12 to 13 minutes until al dente. Drain & rinse in cold water.

2) While pasta cooks, heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook 3 minutes. Stir in crushed tomatoes, sugar, garlic salt and oregano. Bring to a simmer; cook 3 minutes. Crumble in ground beef & simmer, uncovered, 15 minutes, breaking meat into small pieces with a spoon & stirring occasionally.

3) Place cooled pasta in a large bowl & toss with egg & 1/2 C. of the shredded cheese. Coat a 9 in. springform pan with nonstick cooking spray. Prop up pan on its side and begin stacking noodles in pan (so they are standing on end). Return pan to upright position and gently move noodles around until they are al level.

4) Spoon tomato sauce onto noodles, pressing some of the meat sauce into the centers of the noodles. Place pan on a sheet of foil and bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes. Sprinkle remaining 1 1/2 C. shredded cheese and the grated Parmesan over pie. Bake 15 minutes more. Cool 10 minutes. Garnish with parsley, if using.

Makes:

8 servings

Prep:

20 minutes

Cook:

21 minutes

Bake:

30 minutes

A little trick I learned after doing this is you might wanna put the pan on a tray before putting on the meat sauce. This way if any grease from the sauce spills out from the pan it will land on the tray and not the countertop. This was definitely a favorite with our son.