Baked Pasta, with Infinite Possibilities

This recipe was in my monthly Food Network magazine.  Well, it's not really a recipe, it's a method.  Mix and match different pasta with different veggies and meats and see what you come up with!  I used fusilli, pepperoni, spinach, ricotta and Parmesan. 

Baked Pasta, with Infinite Possibilities
from Food Network Magazine

1.  Pick a pasta.  Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.  Bring a large pot of salted water to boil; cook 1 pound of pasta until very al dente, 2 or 3 minutes less than the label directs; drain.  Choose from:

• Farfalle
• Cavatappi
• Fusili
• Rigatoni
• Penne
• Ziti
• Large Shells

2.  Heat up 4 cups prepared tomato sauce
3.  Choose your mix-ins.  While the sauce simmers, prepare 3 cups meat and/or veggies (in any combination).  Choose from:

• Italian sausage, crumbled and cooked
• Meatballs, quartered and cooked
• Pepperoni, chopped
• Rotisserie chicken, shredded
• Hard-boiled eggs, chopped
• Roasted Red Peppers, sliced
• Frozen artichoke hearts, thawed and chopped
• Zucchini, sliced and sauteed
• Mushrooms, sliced and sauteed
• Eggplant, sliced and sauteed
• Fennel, sliced and sauteed
• Spinach, chopped and sauteed
• Escarole, chopped and sauteed (I'm not going to pretend to know what that is)
• Black or green pitted olives, chopped

4.  Flavor the sauce.  Stir in one of the following ingredients into your sauce, then add meat and/or veggie mix-ins.

• For herb sauce:  1 cup each chopped basil and parsley
• For creamy sauce: 1 cup fresh ricotta
• For meat sauce:  3/4 pound pancetta, diced and browned

5.  Pick your cheese.  Prepare 3 cups melting cheese and 1 cup grating cheese.
Melting cheese:

• Fresh mozzarella, cubed
• Mild provolone, shredded
• Italian fontina, shredded
• Young asiago, shredded

Grating cheese:

• Parmesan, grated
• Pecorino, grated
• Ricotta salata, grated

6.  Bake the casserole.  Toss the cooked pasta with the sauce and half of each cheese.  Spread in an oiled 3 to 4 quart baking dish.  sprinkle the remaining cheese over the pasta.  Bake, uncovered, until browned, about 15 minutes.  Let rest 15 minutes before serving.