Ravioli Bake

Ravioli is one of my favorite of dishes at Olive Garden, but we don’t get there very often because we are usually in too much of a hurry and too hungry to wait an hour to eat.  So I make it at home.  Frozen ravioli is a little on the less than cheap side, but I buy it at Costco in a big bag and it makes it a little more affordable.  Feel free to use a generic spaghetti sauce and just plain old mozzarella to help cut down on the cost of this meal.  However, this 9x13 pan will feed us for two meals, so there’s that.  Did I mention that it take 5 minutes to put together?  Love that.  Throw together a salad and French bread on the side and dinner is d-o-n-e.  It has to cook for 45 minutes and then let it stand for 10, so don’t forget to plan accordingly. 

Ravioli Bake

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes plus 10 minutes standing time
Family Friendliness:  My kids really like this, but I fed it to other kids once and they looked at me like I was feeding them poison.  So I guess it depends on the kids.
 
Ingredients
1 (26 oz.) jar spaghetti sauce
1 can (14 ½ oz.) diced tomatoes, undrained (I use a pint of home canned tomatoes, undrained)
½ c. water (I omit this since my canned tomatoes have my liquid in them.)
1 (2 lbs.) pkg. frozen cheese ravioli  (I've never been able to find a 2 lb. pkg of ravioli so I just buy a 3 lb. bag at Wal-Mart or a really big bag at Costco)
1 pkg. (7 oz.) Italian three cheese blend
2 T. grated Parmesan cheese
Directions: Heat oven to 400˚. Mix spaghetti sauce, tomatoes and water; spoon 1 cup onto bottom of 9x13 pan.  Layer half the ravioli and 1 cup shredded cheese over sauce mixture.  Top with remaining ravioli and sauce mixture.   Sprinkle with remaining shredded cheese; cover.  Bake 30 minutes; uncover.  Bake 15 minutes more or until ravioli is tender and heated through and the cheese is melted.  Sprinkle with Parmesan.  Let stand 10 minutes before serving.
(This recipe was found in a Kraft's Food magazine)

Stromboli Sandwiches

Think of these as Italian sloppy joes.  I love these because the flavor is quite robust and on the crunchy Italian bread, yum...  That's all I can say about them.  I think that this sauce would be yummy over pasta.  Let me know if you like them!
 

Prep Time: 20-25 minutes

Cook Time: 25-30 minutes
Yields: 8 servings but can easily be doubled
Family Friendliness: The bread crust is a bit tough for kids to bite through.  But make thin slices and spread it on and then bake instead of slicing it lengthwise.  But the taste is great for kids.
Stromboli Sandwiches
Ingredients:
1 lb. Ground beef
1/8 c. finely chopped onion
½ c. ketchup
½ c. tomato sauce
1/8 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1 t. garlic powder, DIVIDED
½ t. dried oregano
¼ t. fennel seed
¼ t. Italian seasoning
¼ c. butter, softened
1 loaf Italian bread, halved lengthwise
2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
Directions: In a dutch oven, cook beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain.  Stir in the ketchup, tomato sauce, Parmesan cheese, ¼ t. garlic powder, oregano, fennel seed and Italian seasoning.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for15 minutes or until thickened, stirring occasionally.  Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine butter and remaining garlic powder; spread over top half of bread.  Sprinkle ½ c. mozzarella cheese over bottom half.  Spoon meat mixture over top; sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese.  Replace bread tops; wrap loaf in foil.  Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until cheese is melted. 
(This recipe and the photo are originally from a Taste of Home magazine)