Roasted Leftover Pasta

Name: Roasted Leftover Pasta
Total time: PT-496085H38M55S
Ingredients: Olive oil for cooking and drizzling; About 3 cups leftover sauced pasta; Salt; 2 cups extras (alone or in combination: dabs of mozzarella or other fresh cheese, chopped cooked vegetables or oil-packed dried tomatoes, pitted olives, that sort of thing); 1 cup topping (alone or in combination: torn bread or bread crumbs, leftover chopped chicken parmesan or meatballs, chopped bacon or sausage, small cooked stuffed pasta; crack eggs on top; be creative); 1/2 cup grated parmesan or Romano cheese; Fresh chopped herbs for garnish (or a pinch dried chile flakes or dried oregano); Ground black pepper

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Makes 2 to 3 servings 1x

Time about 45 minutes, largely unattended

Units Scale

Ingredients

Olive oil for cooking and drizzling
About 3 cups leftover sauced pasta
Salt
2 cups extras (alone or in combination: dabs of mozzarella or other fresh cheese, chopped cooked vegetables or oil-packed dried tomatoes, pitted olives, that sort of thing)
1 cup topping (alone or in combination: torn bread or bread crumbs, leftover chopped chicken parmesan or meatballs, chopped bacon or sausage, small cooked stuffed pasta; crack eggs on top; be creative)
1/2 cup grated parmesan or Romano cheese
Fresh chopped herbs for garnish (or a pinch dried chile flakes or dried oregano)
Ground black pepper

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 425°. Pour a thin film of olive oil in a 12- to 14-inch ovenproof skillet and let it get hot while the oven heats; you want the pan and oil hot but not yet smoking so keep an eye on it. If the pasta is frozen, gently thaw it in the microwave without reheating. Taste the pasta to make sure it doesn’t need salt.

2. When the pan is ready, carefully remove it from the oven and scatter the pasta in the sizzling oil so it’s a little mounded in the center but in a thin layer around the edges. Tuck the extras into the pasta; if you’re worried you might touch the hot pan, by all means use a small fork. If you haven’t already, chop your topping and taste for salt; scatter it over the pasta, letting some bits tumble onto the pan. If anything looks dry-ish, drizzle on some olive oil.

3. Return the pan to the oven and roast the pasta undisturbed until the bottom, top and edges are crisp, and the center is steaming hot (you can poke it with an instant-read thermometer; it should register about 160°). Figure 20 to 30 minutes, time you can use to set the table, make a salad, or whatever you like to do before dinner.

4. As soon as the pasta is out of the oven, sprinkle the grated cheese all over, garnish with the herbs or chiles, and lots of black pepper, and serve straight from the pan.