Baked Spinach & Artichoke Pasta
By: Angela LeMoine
Published: Sunday, December 23, 2012 - 6:38pm

Ingredients




2 lbs short pasta, penne, ziti or rigatoni
2 large shallots, diced
10 garlic cloves, sliced
20 oz spinach, rough chopped
3- 14 oz cans artichoke hearts, drained and quartered
6 Tbsp butter
1/2 cup flour
7 cups milk, slightly warmed
3/4 lb shredded mozzarella cheese
1 1/2 cups grated pecorino romano cheese, plus extra to sprinkle on top
olive oil
salt & pepper

Preparation

1 Oven at 375 degrees. 2 Cook the pasta a couple minutes shy of al dente (according to pkg directions). Drain and put into a very large bowl, toss with a few drizzles of olive oil to prevent sticking. 3 In a large saute pan, over medium heat, add enough oil to just coat the bottom. Add the shallots and garlic, season with salt and pepper and cook until softened. 4 Add in the artichoke hearts and spinach a little at a time until the spinach is all wilted down. Season with salt and pepper. 5 Add the spinach and artichoke mix to the cooked pasta. Toss. 6 Bechamel is a simple basic sauce that can be used to create many different types of sauces. In a large pot, over medium low heat, melt the butter. Whisk in the flour and allow to cook a few minutes. 7 Add in the slightly warmed milk and whisk until smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Raise heat to medium. Cook until thickened enough to just coat the back of a wooden spoon. 8 Shut the heat and add in the mozzarella and pecorino romano cheese. Stir to combine. 9 Pour the sauce over the pasta and stir to combine. Pour the pasta into a large baking dish, sprinkle some more pecorino romano overtop and bake for approx 25-30 minutes, until bubbbly and lightly golden.

About

I absolutely love the spinach & artichoke combo (check out my Savory Spinach & Artichoke Bread Pudding! So Good!). I made this baked pasta dish today for Christmas Eve but of course made a small dish for myself so I can try it. Let me tell ya, this is delicious! I am always put in charge of the non fish dish for Christmas Eve and generally stick to a baked pasta dish because they aren't complicated and I have plenty of cooking for Christmas Day. I've done a butternut squash lasagna and a roasted veggie lasagna in the past, both delicious but I wanted to do something different this year. 
Seeing as I'm on a spinach & artichoke kick I figured why not make a baked pasta! This is made with a short pasta, sautéed garlic, shallots, spinach and artichoke and tossed with a simple béchamel sauce with mozzarella and grated pecorino romano. Rich and creamy, so yummy! Give this one a try soon, great for a crowd!