Pasta Cake

Happy Friday, lovelies! I like you. I made this for you. It’s a loooong weekend. Yay for all of us!

(Except me, because I work freelance. But whatevs.)

What are you doing this weekend? I’m hitting the yoga studio. I’ve finally caved and realize typing doesn’t count as exercise. And since I don’t believe in dieting, I need to be active so I’m not forced to buy an entire new wardrobe.

I think you should make this…it’s PASTA CAKE! Don’t you just love the title?

The title is super sneaky, because, as you can see, it’s not cake, but more of a frittata of sorts. I still liked it. And plus, if it did actually have flour and baking soda and was a cake, it’d just be plain weird. And seeing as I made a super weird dish last time, I’d figure I’d bring you something somewhat normal.

Like most frittatas this dish could go so many ways. You could add mushrooms, asparagus, broccoli–basically any thing in your fridge that needs getting rid of.

And even though the sight of ricotta kinda makes me wanna vom, it works lovely in this dish. As does the rest of the cheeses. I actually recommend adding whatever you have lying around.

And because I wanted gigantic tubes inside the “cake,” I figured rigatoni would be the way to go. If you have leftover pasta from the night before, refrigerate it and add it to this the next morning. Genius! Frugal! I like! 

I listened to the recipe and used a springform pan, but in hindsight I now realize it’s totally not needed. A cast iron would work great, as would a regular skillet.

If you do use a springform, I’d recommend using an 8″ or 7″ (do those even exist?). I used a 9.5″ and while it worked out just fine, it didn’t have the height I was going after. The slice should’ve been able to lay on its side so it really looked like a cake slice.

Anyhoo, despite all that stuff, I loved it. I recommend. Pasta + eggs = cuteness and easiness for days.

Pasta Cake

Adapted slightly from Five Point Restaurant Cookbook

Print this recipe!

1 pound of penne or rigatoni

1 tablespoon of unsalted butter

6 large eggs

Salt and Ground Pepper

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 teaspoon of crushed red pepper (*optional)

1 1/2 frozen spinach, thawed and drained*

1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese, grated

1 cup of cubed mozzarella (try to use low-moisture if possible)

1 cup of ricotta

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. bring a large pot of heavily salted water to boil. smear the inside of a 8 inch spring form pan with butter and set it aside.

Cook the penne in the boiling water until it’s cooked about half way through–super al dente, about 5 minutes. Drain the pasta and set it aside.

Crack the 6 eggs in a large bowl and beat. Add the cheeses, spinach, crushed red pepper, minced garlic and salt and pepper.  Add the cooked pasta and fold the mixture over itself until it’s uniformly dressed.  Then turn it out into the prepared springform pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until the top is slightly golden brown and firm to the touch. Let it cool for 5 minutes, then remove from pan and serve warm or room temperature.

*If you want to use fresh spinach, which I personally think would be lovely, then cook in a saute pan with a little olive oil and salt and pepper until wilted. Then chop and add to egg mixture.

Tagged as: Eggs, Pasta