Easy Cheesy Baked Tortellini
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This cheesy baked tortellini is an easy 30-minute dinner made with tender filled pasta baked in a creamy tomato sauce and topped with bubbling mozzarella. Everything comes together in one pan using simple Aldi ingredients, with no need to boil the tortellini first.
The tomato sauce is made from scratch with passata, garlic, herbs, parmesan and a splash of cream, making this an easy alternative to a traditional pasta bake when you need dinner on the table quickly. If you love simple pasta dinners, try my tuna pasta bake or one-pan lasagna next.
Why this Recipe works
Ingredients required
- Tortellini: Fresh or shelf-stable tortellini both work well. I usually use cheese-filled tortellini, but you can choose whichever filling you prefer.
- Shallots: Give the sauce a slightly sweeter, more delicate flavour than regular onions. A small yellow or brown onion works perfectly well instead.
- Garlic: Four cloves give the tomato sauce plenty of flavour. Fresh garlic is best here.
- Thyme and Italian herbs: Fresh thyme adds a lovely savoury flavour, while dried Italian herbs provide an easy mixture of Mediterranean herbs without needing several separate jars.
- Passata: Creates a smooth tomato sauce that coats the tortellini really well. Chopped tomatoes can be used instead, although the finished sauce will have more texture.
- Double cream: Softens the acidity of the tomatoes and makes the sauce rich and creamy. Heavy cream is the US equivalent.
- Lemon: A squeeze of fresh lemon brightens the creamy tomato sauce and balances the richness of the cheese.
- Cinnamon: Just a small amount adds warmth and depth to the tomato sauce without making it taste of cinnamon. Don’t be tempted to add too much.
- Mozzarella and parmesan: Mozzarella gives you that bubbling, stretchy cheese topping, while parmesan adds a stronger savoury flavour.
- Kale or spinach: Either can be added for some extra vegetables. Spinach wilts almost immediately; kale needs a few extra minutes to soften.
See the recipe card below for the full list of ingredients and exact quantities.
How to make cheesy baked tortellini
- Sauté the aromatics: Preheat the oven to 180°C / 160°C fan / 350°F. Heat the olive oil in a large oven-safe frying pan over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook until softened, then add the garlic, thyme and Italian herbs and cook until fragrant.
- Make the tomato sauce: Pour the passata into the pan and bring to a gentle simmer. Season with salt and pepper and simmer for a few minutes to allow the flavours to develop.
- Make it creamy: Stir in the double cream, lemon juice and cinnamon until completely combined and the sauce is smooth and creamy.
- Add the tortellini: Add the tortellini to the creamy tomato sauce and stir well so that every piece is coated.
- Add the parmesan: Stir half of the grated parmesan through the tortellini until it melts into the sauce. If using spinach or kale, stir it in at this stage and allow it to wilt.
- Top and bake: Scatter the mozzarella and remaining parmesan evenly over the tortellini. Transfer the pan to the oven and bake for about 20 minutes, until the cheese is melted, bubbling and golden.
Chef’s Guide: Expert Tips
Here are a few simple tips, drawn from my training and kitchen experience, to help you get the best results every time.
- Don’t pre-cook the tortellini: Use fresh tortellini straight from the packet. It cooks directly in the tomato sauce while the dish bakes, absorbing some of the flavour as it cooks. Dried tortellini requires a different cooking time and liquid ratio, so I don’t recommend substituting it here.
- Use an oven-safe pan: Making the sauce and baking the tortellini in the same pan keeps the recipe quick and saves on washing up. If your frying pan isn’t oven-safe, transfer everything to a baking dish before adding the cheese.
- Keep the cinnamon subtle: You shouldn’t actually taste cinnamon in the finished sauce. The small amount rounds out the acidity of the tomatoes and adds warmth; adding more can quickly overpower the other flavours.
- Watch the consistency: The sauce should look slightly looser than you ultimately want it before it goes into the oven. The fresh tortellini absorbs some of the sauce as it cooks, and the sauce will thicken as it bakes.
- Get that golden top: If the tortellini is cooked but the cheese isn’t quite golden enough, put it under the grill/broiler for a minute or two at the end. Keep an eye on it — mozzarella can go from pale to scorched surprisingly quickly.
Leftovers and Storage
- Fridge: Store leftover tortellini in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- Freezer: I don’t recommend freezing this one. The fresh tortellini can become too soft once frozen and reheated, and the creamy sauce may separate.
- Reheating: Reheat gently in the microwave or in a covered pan over low heat until piping hot. Add a small splash of water or cream if the sauce has thickened too much.
- Make ahead: You can make the tomato sauce ahead of time and refrigerate it for up to 2 days. Add the fresh tortellini and cheese just before baking, so the pasta doesn’t soften while it sits.
FAQs
No. This recipe uses fresh tortellini, which cooks directly in the sauce in the oven. There’s no need to boil it first.
I don’t recommend it. Dried tortellini requires a longer cooking time and more liquid, so it won’t work as a straight substitution in this recipe.
Yes. Make the sauce in a regular frying pan, stir in the tortellini, then transfer everything to a baking dish. Top with the mozzarella and parmesan and bake as directed.
Easy Cheesy Baked Tortellini
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 250 g (½ lb) fresh tortellini
- 2 shallots, finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
- 1 tablespoon dried Italian herbs
- 500 g (17 oz) passata
- 100 ml (⅓ cup) double cream (heavy cream)
- ½ lemon, juice only
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 250 g (about 2 cups) shredded mozzarella
- 50 g (½ cup) finely grated parmesan
- 80 –100g, (about 2½ cups) spinach or kale, optional
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven: Preheat the oven to 180°C / 160°C fan / 350°F.
- Sauté the aromatics: Heat the olive oil in a large oven-safe frying pan over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook until softened. Add the garlic, thyme and Italian herbs and cook until fragrant.
- Make the tomato sauce: Pour in the passata, season with salt and pepper and bring to a gentle simmer.
- Make it creamy: Stir in the double cream, lemon juice and cinnamon until completely combined.
- Add the tortellini: Add the uncooked fresh tortellini straight from the packet and stir until well coated in the sauce.
- Add the parmesan: Stir through half of the parmesan. If using spinach or kale, add it now and allow it to begin to wilt.
- Add the cheese: Scatter the mozzarella and remaining parmesan evenly over the top.
- Bake: Transfer to the oven and bake for about 20 minutes, until the tortellini is tender and the cheese is melted, bubbling and golden. Serve hot.
Notes
- Fresh tortellini: Do not boil the tortellini first. Fresh tortellini cooks directly in the sauce as the dish bakes. I don’t recommend substituting dried tortellini, as it requires a different amount of liquid and a longer cooking time.
- Sauce consistency: The sauce should be slightly looser before baking because the tortellini absorbs some of the liquid as it cooks.
- No oven-safe pan: Make the sauce in a regular frying pan, then transfer everything to a baking dish before topping with cheese and baking.
- Kale vs spinach: Spinach wilts very quickly. If using kale, give it a few extra minutes to soften.
- Cinnamon: The cinnamon should add subtle warmth rather than an obvious cinnamon flavour, so don’t be tempted to increase it.
Nutrition
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Meet the Chef!
Hi, I’m Debs, a Cordon Bleu-trained chef dedicated to helping you create unforgettable meals on a budget. Discover more about my journey and dive into a world of foolproof recipes designed for those who love to eat well without overspending.
This recipe sounds really good and I would like to give it a try but was wondering if it could be prepared but held to bake just before guests arrive?
It sure can. But I would only leave it a few hours, not overnight. Any longer than that and the tortellini will start to absorb too much of the sauce and they’ll go soggy.
In the recipe you stated ‘drained tortellini’ so presumably you parboil them before adding to the sauce?
Both fresh and dried tortellini need precooking I think
Hi Pauline, you don’t need to cook the fresh or dried tortellini for this recipe. Both get cooked in the sauce. If you’re using fresh make the recipe as instructed and you’re using dried tortellini add an extra 10 minutes to the baking time to ensure that the pasta is cooked. I just updated the recipe this week, and it looks like somehow you have got the older version. But it’s been updated to make it easier and the instructions have been updated for clarity.
Love the concept of your website, even though I don’t have an Aldi near me – I’m using it to try to increase the number of meals my daughter will eat.
This was a tasty recipe … but no mention of the oven temperature!
It would be really helpful to include nutritional information in your recipes too – with so much cheese this is supercalorific!
Hi Emma. Thanks so much. And I’m so sorry about missing the oven temp! I’ve updated it now. And I’ve added the nutritional info. All the recipes do have nutritional values added but there may be the odd one that I’ve missed here and there. This one is one of them, so thanks for catching it and letting me know. Really happy that you’re liking the recipes and adapting them to your available shopping. Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a comment. Any and all feedback is so helpful and much appreciated!
🙂
The recipe doesn’t mention the quantity of kale
Sorry about that. Kale is about 2 cups which works out to 80-100g. You can add more if you like or add some spinach. I’ve updated the recipe now. Thanks for catching that.