The beauty of this dish is that you can double the ingredients and make enough to freeze for leftovers. It’s perfect for those days when you’re short on time, or aren’t feeling in the mood to cook – it beats takeaways!
Serves: 2–3
Ingredients
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 30g mature Cheddar cheese
- 30g stale bread
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- olive oil
- 2 sausages
- 1 pinch of dried chilli flakes
- 2 x 400g tins of peeled tomatoes
- 300g dried rigatoni
Method
Preheat the oven to 200ºC.
Peel and finely slice the garlic. Coarsely grate the cheddar cheese. Tear the stale bread into small chunks or blitz in the food processor.
Tip the breadcrumbs into a bowl with one of the sliced garlic cloves, a good pinch of the oregano, the grated cheese, a pinch of sea salt and a sprinkling of black pepper. Drizzle with a little oil and toss to mix it all together.
Pop the sausages out of their skins and break each one into 4 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a ball shape and place in an ovenproof dish. Drizzle over a little oil and roll to coat. Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes, or until golden and cooked through.
Heat a little oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add the remaining sliced garlic and oregano, and the chilli flakes. Stir until the garlic is coloured, then tip in the tomatoes.
Add a pinch of salt and pepper, bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Cook the rigatoni according to the packet instructions, taking it off the heat 2 minutes early, so it’s al dente. Drain in a colander and tip into a large baking dish.
Add the sausage balls, pour over the sauce and toss well. Sprinkle over the cheesy crumb mix and bake for 15 minutes, or until golden on top and bubbling.
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Are you a fan of pasta bake? Can you think of anything to add to this dish? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.
Also read: Easy pea and bacon soup
