This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
This cheesy vegetable casserole is a great weeknight dinner that you can have on the table in 30 minutes! You’ll love this hearty veggie pasta bake smothered in cheese and baked to perfection!
This week Hattie, my youngest, turned FIVE years old! I can hardly believe it. We look at old photos of the kids from a few years ago and it just seems like last month. Time needs to slow down. Please!?
For her birthday, I spoiled her rotten and we had a lot of sugar that day. Sprinkle pancakes (family tradition), cake pops and an afternoon tea where there was no shortage of treats and pastries available! By the time her actual dinner and dessert rolled around I think we were both thinking we’d rather eat a plate full of vegetables than any more sweets!
So, enter the veggie pasta bake!
This vegetable bake is a similar concept to my chicken and broccoli pasta bake which has been a popular dish among my readers!
What is a pasta bake?
Just as it sounds, a pasta bake combines cooked pasta along with some other ingredients and a sauce component into a casserole dish and baked in the oven until warm and bubbly.
I wanted to keep this a tomato based casserole and I definitely wanted to keep it vegetarian this time, so I added some hearty vegetables into this dish and of course, topped it all with cheese!
Ingredients for this veggie pasta bake:
You can choose any type of short cut pasta you prefer, such as a rotini or macaroni noodle. Simply cook the pasta to al dente and set it aside to cool.
The ingredients you’ll need for this dish are:
- short cut pasta
- olive oil
- diced onion
- minced garlic
- diced pepper
- diced zucchini
- diced carrots
- peas
- oregano
- tomato suace
- mozzarella cheese
- parmesan cheese
How do you make this vegetable casserole?
To make this super simple dish, you can follow these instructions:
1. Start by preheating the oven to 400F and spraying a 9×13″ pan with nonstick spray. Begin boiling the water for the pasta, and once it reaches a boiling temperature, generously salt the water and add the pasta. Cook until just al dente, usually about 6-7 minutes. Drain, and set the pasta aside to cool.
2. Heat a large skillet on the stove to medium-high and add the olive oil. After a minute, add the diced onion and sauté for 4-5 minutes until softened. Add the minced garlic and cook for another minute, before adding in the peppers, zucchini and carrots. Cook on low-medium heat for about 5-6 minutes or until the carrots are softened. Add in the peas, oregano, salt and pepper and cook for another minute or so. Remove the skillet from heat.
3. Add the drained pasta to the cooked vegetables, along with the pasta sauce. Stir everything together until thoroughly combined, then empty the contents into the prepared casserole dish. Top the casserole with the mozzarella cheese, followed by the parmesan cheese.
4. Bake the pasta for 15-20 minutes in the oven, until the cheese is browned and bubbly. Remove the casserole dish from the oven and allow it to cool for 5 minutes before serving!
Can you add meat to this veggie pasta bake?
You could certainly add cooked, shredded chicken to the dish or even cooked ground beef! If you do add meat, you would most likely want to add additional pasta sauce to the combination to ensure it’s saucy enough!
Can you use gluten free pasta for this casserole?
Yes, definitely! The recipe doesn’t have to change at all in order to use gluten free pasta instead of regular. You could also make this a vegan dish by swapping the cheese for vegan cheese or omitting the cheese altogether.
What do you serve this veggie pasta bake with?
The recipe is quite filling so you likely won’t need anything else to go with this dish, but you could serve it with a side salad or even a simple bread, such as my 3 ingredient bread!
Other similar recipes you might enjoy:
- chicken pot pie pasta
- cheesy tortellini bake
- creamy vegetable casserole
- chicken and broccoli pasta bake
Veggie Pasta Bake
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 6–8 servings 1x
Description
This cheesy vegetable casserole is a great weeknight dinner that you can have on the table in 30 minutes! You’ll love this hearty veggie pasta bake smothered in cheese and baked to perfection!
Ingredients
- 3/4 lb (340 grams) short cut pasta
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1 small zucchini, diced
- 1 cup diced carrots
- 1 cup frozen green peas
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp ground pepper
- 650 mL jar pasta sauce
- 2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
- 1 cup parmesan cheese, shredded
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 F and spray a 9 x 13″ pan with nonstick spray. Fill a large pot with water over high heat on the stove. Once it reaches a boiling temperature, generously salt the water and add the pasta. Cook until just al dente, usually about 6-7 minutes. Drain, and set the pasta aside to cool.
- Heat a large non-stick skillet on the stove to medium-high and add the olive oil. After a minute, add the diced onion and sauté for 4-5 minutes until softened. Add the minced garlic and cook for another minute, before adding in the pepper, zucchini and carrots. Cook on low-medium heat for about 5-6 minutes or until the carrots are softened. Add in the peas, oregano, salt and pepper and cook for another minute or so. Remove the skillet from heat.
- Add the drained pasta to the cooked vegetables, along with the pasta sauce. Stir everything together until thoroughly combined, then empty the contents into the prepared casserole dish. Top the casserole with the mozzarella cheese, followed by the parmesan cheese.
- Bake the pasta for 15-20 minutes in the oven, until the cheese is browned and bubbly. Remove the casserole dish from the oven and allow it to cool for 5 minutes before serving.
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container, in the fridge, for 3-4 days.
Notes
*If you plan to make this veggie pasta bake a freezer meal, allow the cooked casserole to cool completely to room temperature before wrapping tightly with aluminum foil and placing it in the freezer for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge and reheat in an oven heated to 350 F for 45 minutes.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: dinner
- Method: oven bake
- Cuisine: vegetarian