Try this Baked Cheese Tortellini recipe, or contribute your own.
- Carbohydrate 49.8951808575624 g
- Cholesterol 41.0121666666667 mg
- Fat 8.66847387371513 g
- Fiber 3.38427491528789 g
- Protein 12.8930165080764 g
- Saturated Fat 3.96321037422908 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (219g)
- Sodium 624.979478819444 mg
- Sugar 46.5109059422745 g
- Trans Fat 1.37719049948605 g
- Calories 329 calories
Step-by-step
- Preheat oven to 375.
- In a large pot, boil tortellini 5 minutes, drain and pour into a sprayed 9×13 pan.
- In a blender, combine both sauces, garlic and parsley, blending until smooth.
- Pour sauce over tortellini, tossing slightly.
- If you want to top with 1 cup of shredded cheese, sprinkle evenly on top.
- Bake 30 minutes uncovered.
Jarred alfredo sauce carries the heaviest workload in this dish, binding the acidic tomato element into a cohesive coating through its high fat content. Skeptics of combination sauces often encounter a broken, oily mess because commercial alfredo splits under sustained oven heat unless emulsified properly beforehand. Blending the white and red jars with fresh garlic and parsley homogenizes the dairy fats and tomato solids, creating a stable emulsion that clings to the pasta rather than pooling at the bottom of the 9x13-inch pan. Undercooking the frozen tortellini by boiling it for exactly five minutes prevents the pasta from turning mushy as it absorbs excess liquid during the 375-degree oven bake. Starch release from overcooked pasta destroys the desired bite, leaving a pasty interior instead of distinct pockets of cheese. Adapting this recipe for lactose-intolerant diners requires swapping the dairy sauces for cashew-based equivalents at a one-to-one ratio, though thickening agents like tapioca starch must be added to mimic the viscosity of commercial alfredo. Leftovers remain structurally sound for up to three days when sealed tightly in the refrigerator, provided the mozzarella topping was applied evenly to seal in surface moisture.
