This one-pan creamy baked tortellini recipe is as straightforward as it sounds—just a baking pan and all ingredients go straight in. Baked till cheesy tender baked tortellini perfection, this is a busy day’s best friend, a last-minute pick for a potluck and a can’t go wrong sweet cozy dinner. It’s just easy, simple comfort food.
A little heads up—this one-pan creamy mushroom tortellini is made with the real deal, the “c” word, the one and only: cream! There are things in life, ok things in my life, that I don’t want to replace. There are times when I can and other times I can’t replace…I just can’t. And today I was in that place, so I decided to go with it and pour in the cream!
WHY BAKED TORTELLINI
Even though there’s nothing necessarily emotional about this recipe, it worked as my emotional booster–today was one of my down days. I made a nice big heart of ultimate comfort for dinner and let me tell you, it worked! It just put me in a MUCH better mood and gave me a huge sense of comfort…
Was it how we all enjoyed it together, was it the tortellini, was it that tender pasta texture, was it the warm cozy smell, was it the pretty pink heart plate, or maybe was it the cream?—whatever it was, it really worked!
Besides the comfort factor, this recipe is incredibly easy to make. Everything goes into a single pan, and the oven does all the work! That tortellini absorbs so much flavor from the sauce as it cooks, you won’t believe how flavorful it is.
What is tortellini?
Tortellini pasta is a type of pasta that is filled with cheese or a different mixture and shaped into a circle so that it looks like a tiny donut but with a delicious filling inside. You can buy really good tortellini pasta in the refrigerator section of your grocery store, usually by the fancier salami and cheese or hummus section. You can also make your own tortellini but the refrigerated version you can purchase makes this dish super easy and convenient. My baked tortellini takes these little cheese-filled delights and bakes them in a rich, creamy sauce to make the perfect evening meal.
MAKE BAKED TORTILLINI RECIPE
So let’s call this one-pan creamy mushroom tortellini recipe the comfy mood booster for the day. It needs your favorite pasta pairings (I used only mushrooms today— but oh how a bunch of sun-dried tomatoes would’ve been perfect to throw in too), a nice heaping amount of cream (18% and even 10% will do, but no less), fresh herbs (I used fresh thyme and fresh oregano), a handful of cheeses ( I used parmesan, Havarti and white cheddar) and your favorite tortellini (or ravioli, any filling you prefer—I used cheese here).
The extra step I did was to place the whole baby mushrooms on a piping hot skillet with olive oil, swirling the skillet around for 1 minute to caramelize the mushroom tops. This is optional but quite recommended because it improves the flavor of the mushrooms.
One of the best things about this recipe is that you do not have to cook tortellini. It cooks directly in the pan as it bakes! You can use boxed, dried tortellini, refrigerated fresh tortellini, or frozen tortellini. Each will work slightly differently, but will still make yummy baked tortellini.
At this point, all the ingredients for this comfy mood booster are placed in an oven-proof pan and baked. After 20 minutes remove the covering and bake for an extra 10 mins. If you prefer a drier baked pasta, you can add even more baking time. Finally, it gets sprinkled with extra fresh thyme and Parmesan right before serving. Gather up your favorite people, each one can grab their fork, and share the love! Enjoy 🙂
How to Cook Frozen Tortellini
My recipe was made with a one-pound box of dried tortellini. If you use the yummy refrigerated pasta it will cook a little faster and may not absorb all of the sauce. If you use frozen tortellini, which is equally delicious, you’ll just need to lower the temperature by 25º and then bake the dish for longer since the pasta has to thaw.
One Pan Tortellini Recipe Tips
- If you want meat, you could add pre-cooked meat such as chicken, ground beef, or sausage to this dish. You can even add a dash of red pepper flakes to the meat for a little spice!
- For variety, try it with spaghetti sauce or a meat sauce, or almost any pasta sauce. You can even blend this creamy sauce with red sauce for a different flavor.
- After you remove the cover, bake the pasta dish until the cheese on top starts to turn golden brown.
- Should you purchase fresh tortellini, you should decrease the liquid in the recipe slightly because the pasta is already hydrated.
Other Pasta Dishes to Try
I’m absolutely convinced that our baked tortellini recipe is one your family will love! If you need a lighter version, don’t miss out on this 10 minute Greek cheese tortellini recipe! If I were you, I’d make them both and double enjoy! 😉
Quick shrimp pasta with garlic feta sauce.
Healthy Kale Squash Mushroom Pasta Dish.
One Pan Creamy Mushroom Baked Tortellini
This one pan creamy mushroom tortellini recipe is as straight forward as it sounds—just a baking pan and all ingredients go straight in. Baked till cheesy tender tortellini perfection, this is a busy day’s best friend, a last minute pick for potluck and a can’t go wrong sweet cozy dinner. It’s just easy, simple comfort food..
Ingredients
- 1 box of colored cheese tortellini 1 lb (or your favorite)
- 2 cups of mini mushrooms
- pinch of salt
- 2 tablespoons of fresh thyme leaves
- 1 teaspoon of olive oil
- 2 cups of cream (10%,18% or 35%)
- 1 cup of shredded cheeses (Parmesan and White Cheddar)
- Pinch of salt (more or less to taste)
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper (optional)
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
- Parmesan cheese for serving
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
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Heat a large skillet on medium high heat and add in the olive oil, mushrooms, salt and a pinch of thyme. Swirl the skillet around for 1 minute until mushrooms are golden on the outside.
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In an oven safe pan, place the tortellini and the mushrooms. Then add in the cream, seasoning, fresh thyme and scatter the cheeses on top.
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Cover the pan with foil and place in the oven, bake for about 20 minutes and then uncover and bake for an extra 10 minutes until cheese is bubble and the sauce is thickened up.
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Serve sprinkled with extra fresh thyme and Parmesan cheese if desired.
Oh heck I am totally confused. How can this only be 4 servings with 105 calories each when the 2 cups of cream and a cup of cheese surpasses that by a mile. Then when you add one cup of the tortellini with at least 250 calories. I really think this recipe needs the nutrition corrected. I does sound good and I plan on making it using my leftover mushroom/rice dish in it. But the nutrition section needs to be corrected.
This looks so good! I have a quick question about the macros/nutrition information: is it really only 3g of carbs?? That seems like too goo to be true!
I love straight forward recipes – they are easy to make and are usually extremely delicious! Definitely a great recipe for a busy week.
This looks so delicious. I love that cream and melted cheese on top. I’m definitely putting this on my to try list. It’s perfect easy family dinner. And I know my boys will love this.
Mushrooms, cream, tortellini…nothing is better than this combination. I love myself some incredible dinner like this. Love the dish and that cute heart bowl.
I am very fond of mushrooms. Your recipe has an awesome combination of thyme and Parmesan cheese. I am definitely trying this one.
I love cheesy baked pasta. I love the little mushrooms you included with the pasta as well. This looks like an incredible dinner.
Questions:
Do you cook/boil the tortellini first?
What size pan?
Hi Jeanne, no I don’t cook the tortellini first. It gets cooked in the oven with all the creamy goodness 🙂 A 2 quart pan is ideal for 2-4 servings (depends on how big or small your serving size is 😉 )