Easy Three Cheese Pasta Bake

5 from 2 votes

Easy Three Cheese Pasta Bake

An easy 3 cheese pasta bake with a creamy, tasty and seriously cheesy pasta sauce, and perfectly crisp mozzarella and Parmesan topping.

Prep Time5

Cook Time25

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American, British

Servings:

Calories: 653kcal

Author: Helen

Equipment

2 saucepans
1 baking dish (Note 1)

Ingredients

320 g short pasta (Note 2)
250 g grated/shredded hard cheese Gruyere recommended (Note 3)
50 g Parmesan (Note 4)
4 tbsp butter
4 tbsp flour
600 ml milk
1 tsp mustard powder
1 tsp black pepper
½ tsp onion powder
½ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp smoked paprika

Topping

50 g grated mozzarella (Note 5)
20 g grated Parmesan (Note 6)
2 tbsp panko breadcrumbs Optional (Note 7)
dried chives optional

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Bring a large pan of generously salted water to boil and cook the pasta according to packet instructions.
Meanwhile, place a frying pan on a medium heat and add the butter. (Note 8)
Stir in the flour when the butter has melted until you get a smooth paste.
Pour on the milk slowly and stir continuously for around 5 minutes until a smooth and thicker sauce forms, using a whisk if required to remove any lumps.
Reduce the heat to low and stir in the cheese and season with mustard powder, black pepper, onion powder, garlic powder and smoked paprika.
Remove the sauce from the heat, add the cooked pasta, and transfer the mixture to a baking dish.
Sprinkle grated mozzarella, Parmesan, breadcrumbs and dried chives on top and place under the grill/broil for 5-10 minutes until the topping is brown and bubbling then serve immediately.

Notes

Baking dish: I have tested the recipe in a 27 x 16cm (11 x 6 inch) cast iron baking dish. You can use an oven-safe cast iron pan, instead, for a convenient one-pot meal.
Pasta: I like to use conchiglie (pasta shells) because the concave shape creates a little pocket for the sauce to sit in. Fussilli, penne and rigatoni are also good options.
Cheese for the sauce: Choose a hard cheese that melts well. Cheddar, Gouda and Monterey Jack are all good options.
Parmesan for the sauce: You can use the same volume of the main cheese for the sauce if you need to.
Mozzarella cheese for the topping: you can also use fresh mozzarella.
Parmesan for the cheese topping: you could also use another nutty stronger tasting cheese like mature cheddar.
Panko breadcrumbs: are larger than normal breadcrumbs and make the topping extra crispy. You can use normal breadcrumbs instead.
Making the roux: make sure you use a medium heat. A higher heat can cause the flour to burn.

Storage:

Leftover cheesy baked pasta can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days and frozen for up to 3 months and reheated in the oven, air fryer or microwave. Please refer to the storage section of the blog post for more detailed instructions and information.

Nutrition