Tex -Mex loaded pasta bake is an ultimate combination of Mexican and Italian cuisine. I love casserole dishes, easy to put up especially if I want to make it for large parties or potluck or expecting guests . With smart pre preparation , this entire dish comes together in less than 30 minutes which gives you lot of time to take care of other things on the menu. And this stuff is really good , why wouldn’t it be !! It has pasta, all my favorite veggies , cheese and nachos baked to perfection and perfect comfort food for this cold weather. And not to forget a light drizzle of this green goddess dressing which takes less than 5 minutes to whip up – click for it’s recipe here.
I had made this pasta bake for thanksgiving and I have to share this delicious recipe with you.
Remember my post on the best ever enchilada sauce – find its recipe here.
I have used the same sauce here which gives this pasta bake a great kick .
It is bursting Mexican flavors with addition of sauce , veggies, mexican cheese , beans , nachos and drizzle of green goddess dressing for an ultimate Mexican touch!
Now if you do not have an oven or do not want to bake it , you can just toss everything in a skillet and top with nachos and cheese and the green goddess dressing.
I prefer baking for final touches of melted cheese over the nachos and baking will keep pasta warm till the last bite .
This is what you have to do-
Use pasta of your choice
toss in some sauce homemade or store bought
chop some veggies of your choice
grate some cheese of your choice
mix it all together and rest is baking , isn’t this a quick delicious fix anytime of the day and for any occasion !
And topping it with green goddess dressing is optional, but if you can please do it. It will only add more flavor to your pasta.
Make ahead of time tips
make enchilada sauce ahead of time and even freeze.
boil pasta al dente a day ahead , toss in olive oil and refrigerate .
even chop veggies a day or two in advance .
Highlights
Make ahead of time
flavorful fusion
great for parties and potluck
crowd pleaser
Tex -Mex loaded pasta bake
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon oil.
- 2 cups assorted vegetables diced – approx.
- I have used onions, peppers, sweet corn , olives
- 2 cloves garlic roughly sliced/ chopped
- 1 jalapeno deseeded optional
- ½ cup cooked beans black beans/ rajma
- 1.5 cups uncooked pasta / 180grams approx.
- 2 cups homemade/ store bought enchilada sauce*
- 1 cup cheese divided – Mexican blend *
- Fistful of chopped coriander
- Salt to taste
- Pepper to taste
- Some Nacho chips.
- For garnish -
- 2 tablespoon chopped coriander
- Some olives and sweet corn.
Instructions
- Pre heat oven at 400 deg f/ 200 deg c
- Boil the pasta 2-3 minutes less than mentioned on the package(refer notes).
- Drain it in a colander , run under cold water to stop further cooking. Place it in a bowl/dish. Drizzle some olive oil and pepper, coat well . Keep aside. At this point you can store it in the fridge up to 2 days .
- In a pan heat up some oil, cook garlic until golden brown, add the jalepenos , add onions , cook for 20 seconds , add peppers ,cook for 30 seconds . Switch off the flame. Add in some salt . Coat well.
- Lighly grease 9*13 or related baking pan .
- Put in the pasta and 1.5 cups enchilada sauce
- And the cooked veggies along with sweet corn ,olives, cooked beans, corriander and ½ cup cheese . Give it a quick mix to coat well.
- Taste test and adjust salt or other seasoning.
- Top it with remaining ½ cup enchilada sauce .
- Cover it with foil and bake it on the middle rack for 20-25 minutes.
- Carefully pull it out of the oven and top it up with nacho chips
- Sprinkle remaining cheese on the top and bake it uncovered on the middle rack for 10 more minutes or until the cheese has melted.
- Take it out of the oven , garnish it with some coriander, olives , sweetcorn (optional)
- Serve hot with a drizzle of green goddess dressing , recipe mentioned above
Notes
Use desired beans
Skip jalapeno / green chilies
Use any cheese that melts well – I have used monterey jack and sharp cheddar.
Leftovers can be refrigerated minus the chips.
homemade enchilada sauce and green goddess dressing recipes mentioned above .
If skipping baking cook your pasta al dente as mentioned on the package.
hope you like this recipe and do give it a try. I would love to hear from you. If you have tried any of my recipes do drop in a feedback in the comment section or on my Facebook page carveyourcraving in messages section.
happy cooking!
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Hi Khushboo
I tried this recipe today but pasta looks uncooked little bit . I did boiled pasta for few mins .
Should i keep in oven for more time ?
Thanks
Janki
I hope the pasta turned out well Janki! You need to boil the pasta just 2 minutes short the boiling time so that when it is baked it is not overcooked. We like pasta al dente! Cook as per your preference.
Thank you for the recipe! Turned out delicious and time saving too. Can you suggest some variations in the same recipe like different sauce/ veggies?
I am glad you liked it. Sure request noted. Are you looking for pasta recipes only? You may try my Mexican enchilada recipe too.
Thank you Khushboo. This was a big hit. Everyone loved this spiced up pasta that I made for a get together. So easy with your tips.
Happy it worked for you Kriya. Thank you for a lovely feedback .
So colorful. Love the recipe.
Thank you Avin!
Hi Khushboo…I had made this recipe n it was yummmm…just loved it…ur recipes are super easy quick n yummyyy…just love them…I had also made teriyaki sauce n rice even that was very tasty…
Happy to know that Grishma. Thank you for a great feedback 🙂
Hey khushboo thanks for the recipe…should I buy blcak beans in the can and further cook them or that should suffice…thanks a lot
no need to further cook them Kim , just wash them thoroughly before adding.
Thanks dear also what brand of sweet corn do u use
It doesn’t matter, I use frozen simply organic one.
Thanks for an amazing recipe Khusboo…tried it out tonight and it was awesome ??
Could u post a recipe for enchiladas too ? TIA
glad to know that Ambika , will be posting enchiladas soon with a different sauce.
Enchilada sauce looks so yum. Easy and delicious pasta with the Mexican taste.
thanks
This is too good khushboo.Loved it and shall try soon.
Such a time saver recipe.
thank you, will wait for the feedback , happy cooking!