Skillet Baked Stuffed Rigatoni

I knew last Tuesday was going to be a little epic right when I woke up. I got out of bed with a little bit of child-like wonder because, yes, we finally got a little bit more snow! I love snow. I love, love, love it & I always feel a need to be out in it, especially as it's coming down. John & I have this strange fascination for needing to be out "in the elements" when it's extreme outside (mostly just the cold or when it's snowing). Maybe it's because I'm from northern Minnesota, maybe it's because I have an amazingly warm down winter coat & mukluks. Who knows. Either way, when it's snowing or below zero, we might just be outside on a walk.

On this particular day, I had some errands to run, but instead of packing up my little one in the car, we piled on our layers of clothes (I'm a big fan of having the right winter gear to make it though happily), & I strapped her into the Ergo & away we went. We live just 4 blocks south of downtown, so most of our errands were within walking distance.

There's just something so special about being out during a snowstorm. Everything is so still & serene. It's challenging & exhausting (especially when you're carrying someone else!) but the effort is worth every bit of struggle.

My epic-ness carried on into my afternoon as I started to prepare dinner. This recipe seemed like such a cinch to make & although that's not far from the truth, the time it takes to put together was a big fat lie. I think it said it should take like 20 minutes. Now, I tend to be pretty quick in the kitchen, but really? 20 minutes? So maybe my piping skills are below average & maybe I had to go through a couple of baggies to get the hole size right. So what. It was a lot of work, but worth every effort.

Plus I had an epic mix of Sigur Ros & Alt-J playing to keep the high going even further, so the time was really precious (plus my kid was sleeping= epic all on its own).

What are the recipes you savor creating?

Served with salad (spring greens, grated carrots, roasted beets, sesame seeds, & balsamic vinaigrette)

Skillet Baked Stuffed Rigatoni
Ingredients
1lb whole wheat rigatoni pasta
8 ounces ricotta cheese
4 ounces goat cheese
Kosher salt
Fresh black pepper
3 cups spaghetti sauce
1 handful fresh basil leaves
½ cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the rigatoni & cook to 2 minutes shy of al dente. Drain them.

In a medium sized bowl, combine the ricotta cheese & the goat cheese & stir until well combined. Season with kosher salt & black pepper. Put the cheese mixture in a pastry bag or Ziploc & snip the end off (make sure the hole is smaller than the pasta opening). Pipe the room temperature cheese into the rigatoni noodles (it's way easier to handle at room temp).

Pour 1 cup of spaghetti sauce on the bottom of an 8-10” skillet. Follow that with the basil leaves. Line up all the noodles in concentric circles, 1 layer at a time. When all of the noodles are in the pan. Pour the remaining sauce over the top of the noodles. Sprinkle the Parmesan over the top of the sauce. Bake the pasta about 15 minutes until the edges are getting golden & the dish is very hot.

Recipe taken from Heather Christo Cooks