Creamy Ravioli and Meatball Casserole is a delicious, comforting dinner full of cheesy goodness! An easy recipe with a white sauce base, it is the perfect recipe for a busy day when you are too tired or too harried to spend much time in the kitchen.
This casserole comes together in a few minutes, allowing you to do other things while it’s warming in the oven. You can even make it ahead of time, pop it in the oven (add a few extra minutes cooking time for a refrigerated casserole) and voila, dinner’s ready!
Even though it is fast and easy, this recipe does require that you have a few ingredients on hand. Frozen meatballs and fresh ravioli from the deli section of your grocery store are the key ingredients, plus a white sauce made from scratch. Topped with pre-shredded mozzarella cheese, this casserole takes no time at all to prepare.
To make it even more decadent, add a couple of cans of sliced mushrooms and sprinkle the finish casserole with fresh basil. So easy, cheesy and delicious, Creamy Ravioli and Meatball Casserole is sure to become a family favorite for busy nights.
Here’s the recipe:
PrintCreamy Ravioli and Meatball Casserole
An easy recipe on a busy night, Creamy Ravioli and Meatball Casserole is a delicious, comforting dinner full of cheesy goodness!
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 35 mins
- Total Time: 45 mins
- Yield: 8 1x
- Category: Casserole
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon canola oil or non-stick cooking spray
- 1/2 cup butter, divided
- 1/2 yellow onion, peeled and chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled and finely minced
- 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 3 1/2 cups whole milk
- 1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
- 18 ounce package (or larger) of deli fresh pre-made cheese ravioli
- 12 ounces of frozen turkey meatballs (about 12 meatballs)
- 2 – 4 ounce cans sliced mushrooms, drained (optional)
- 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- Fresh basil leaves for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
- Spray a 9″ x 13″ casserole dish with non-stick cooking spray or rub with canola oil.
- In a saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons butter.
- To saucepan, add onions and saute until translucent.
- Add garlic and saute for a few minutes more.
- Next, add remaining butter to saucepan and melt completely.
- Once butter has melted, add flour and stir, constantly, until well-combined and paste-like; cook for a few minutes more to remove flour taste.
- Add milk all at once, stirring constantly.
- Bring to a boil, reduce heat and stir, constantly, until sauce has thickened and coats the back of your spoon.
- Add shredded Parmesan cheese and stir until melted and incorporated in to sauce; remove from heat.
- Pour one-third of the sauce mixture into the prepared casserole dish and spread evenly all over the bottom of the pan with the back of your spoon.
- Layer one half of the ravioli over the sauce mixture.
- Sprinkle one-third of the mushrooms (optional) over the ravioli.
- Cut all 12 frozen meatballs in half, and layer half (6 meatballs or 12 halves) over the mushrooms and ravioli.
- Sprinkle 1 cup of mozzarella cheese over meatballs.
- Repeat this layer one more time: one-third sauce, one-half of ravioli, one-third of mushrooms, the rest of the meatballs, 1 cup of cheese.
- Final layer: remaining sauce, one-third mushrooms, last cup of cheese.
- Bake in pre-heated oven until bubbly and heated through.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool 5 minutes before serving.
Notes
Can be made ahead of time and stored in refrigerator for a few days. Increase baking time by about 10 minutes to account for cold casserole. Also, cover lightly with foil (not too close to cheese or cheese will stick to foil) and remove foil for the last 10 minutes. Don’t use grated Parmesan cheese!! Be sure to use shredded. If you don’t have shredded, reduce amount of Parmesan to one-quarter cup.
Add a fresh green salad to round our your meal!
Tootles,
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(other casserole recipes)
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