Ravioli bake becomes a new favorite

I’d like to thank all the readers who reached out to me with words of encouragement last week. It meant more to me than I can express. I tried to respond to each of you individually, but if I missed someone, thank you.

Husband Joe and I have been eating lots of comfort foods at our house lately and relying on familiar favorites for many of our meals. That’s meant lots of breakfast-for-dinner, grilled cheese sandwiches, beans and cornbread, thick-pattied homemade burgers, taco soup, enchiladas, potstickers — many of them recipes I’ve written about before.

Something new, yet still familiar that we both enjoyed and plan to make again is this ravioli casserole. It’s cheesy and beefy and tomato-y — all the things we find ourselves craving right now.

We ate it with a big salad — romaine lettuce, baby spinach, cucumbers, carrots, yellow bell pepper — but it would also be good with green beans, or to keep it simple, stir some baby spinach or Swiss chard in with the tomato sauce.

Beefy, Cheesy Ravioli Bake

1 pound ground beef Olive oil or vegetable oil, for sauteing

1 onion, diced

1 red bell pepper, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon dried oregano

Crushed red pepper flakes, to taste

1 (20-ounce) package refrigerated

cheese ravioli

2 cups homemade or jarred red pasta sauce

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese Parmesan, for serving

Heat oven to 350 degrees. In a large skillet, cook ground beef, breaking it into crumbles, until no longer pink. Remove beef; drain and set aside. In the same skillet add just enough oil to coat and place over medium heat. Add the onion and bell pepper and cook, stirring frequently, until onion and bell pepper are tender. Add the garlic, basil, oregano and chile flakes and cook, stirring

constantly, for about two minutes. Add the ravioli to the skillet, then the tomato sauce. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally until ravioli are tender, about five minutes. If the skillet is large enough, return the ground beef to the skillet and stir well to mix. If your skillet isn’t large enough, combine the ground beef and ravioli mixture in a large mixing bowl and mix well. Transfer the mixture to a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Sprinkle the mozzarella evenly over the top and bake 15 to 20 minutes or until cheese is melted and browned in spots. Serve with parmesan. Makes about 6 servings.