Four Cheese Baked Skillet Rigatoni. {Video!}
Oh friends.
Someone did something… foolish.
This foolish thing that someone did, well… was to swing by Starbucks in the airport last night at – get ready for it – 7PM. You know, this certain someone who doesn’t drink coffee? But decided that since she went to great lengths to get a big, drippy ice cream cone this weekend and nearly bawled after each attempt failed, that a deliciously frozen white chocolate mocha frappuccino would suffice? Oh, as dinner too. Yes, that would suffice as dinner.
Very wise this person is.
Soooo now it’s like 2AM and this someone is wide awake and bouncing off the walls which is just fabulous because her cumulative amount of sleep over the last six days is probably somewhere around 12 hours. Oh and this is after her massive jitter attack on the plane when she started to have cold sweats like crazy and go weak in the knees since her last meal was ten hours before and mainly composed of mimosas and even though caffeine alllllllways does this to her she assumed !this time would be different! because she developed magic powers or something.
I’m about to punch myself in the face. Or ingest a bottle of Nyquil. Or maybe both? Because I’m pretty sure that would knock me out. But but but I don’t want it to wipe away my memory of the last six hours because the highlight of my life occurred tonight when the man next to me on the plane asked me if I was “coming back to Pittsburgh from my college spring break.”
Ummm no I’m not nice man but thank you for transporting me back eight years. What tipped you off? Was it my dirty hooded sweatshirt? My broken out face? My hair piled on top of my head and my overall general dirtbag appearance that resembled every Friday and Monday morning of my collegiate years?
This was all great and good and wonderful especially after he asked me for the second time “so you’re really not in college?”… only to tell me five minutes later that he is having retina issues and his vision is so blurry that he can barely see 6 inches in front of his face clearly. Ah well.
Who wants some mac and cheese? I would have to say definitely me, if only for the hopes of falling into a food coma because if you haven’t realized it yet, I’M WIDE AWAKE in the middle of the night.
And now I’m just hungry. By the way, do you even KNOW what kind of infomercials are on TV at this time? What?!
Since everything is ten thousand times better when it comes out of a cast iron skillet, you should absolutely drop what you’re doing and make this. If you recall, we are quite enamored with lobster mac and cheese and while I’ve been making a version of my own for years, the minute my husband took a cheesy bite of these baby rigatonis he deemed the recipe the “closest to Capital Grille’s lobster mac” he’s tasted.
While it’s lacking in lobster, the texture and consistency of the sauce came out nearly identical to one of our favorite treats. Because of the mascarpone’s high fat content, the dish will accumulate a bit of oil, but if you’ve ever had said lobster mac, you know this is a common feature. I chose to use these adorable short and fat mini rigatoni noodles, but you can certainly play around with a few other pastas if you wish. Just make sure you have a big skillet for this amount of sauce + pasta (mine is over 13 inches in diameter) or have a baking dish on hand to catch the overflow and simply bake the rest.
Then just… devour it. And sing me to sleep when you’re done?
Four Cheese Baked Skillet Mini Rigs
Ingredients
- 1 pound mini rigatoni pasta
- 1 shallot, sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced or pressde
- 1/2 teaspoon olive oil
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup flour
- 2 cups milk
- 1/3 cup mascarpone cheese
- 8 ounces freshly grated gruyere cheese
- 8 ounces freshly grated sharp cheddar cheese
- 8 ounces freshly grated fontina cheese
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/3 cup panko bread crumbs
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grate cheeses, placing them together in a large bowl. Boil water and prepare pasta according to directions, cooking for 3-4 minutes less than called-for time.
- Heat a large oven-safe skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add in olive oil and butter, then throw in shallots with a pinch of salt. Stir to coat and cook for 2-3 minutes, until soft. Add in garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add flour to the skillet then whisk constantly to create a roux. Let cook for 2-3 minutes until golden brown. Pour in milk, stirring continuously for another 1-2 minutes. Add in mascarpone and almost all of the grated cheeses, reserving about 1/2 cup of the grated cheese. Stir continuously until mixture thickens, about 3-4 minutes. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg, then tasted and season more if desired. Add pasta to the skillet and toss thoroughly to coat.
- Sprinkle the top of the mixture with remaining cheeses and breadcrumbs. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until top is golden brown and bubbly. Serve immediately.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Be sure to follow @howsweeteats on instagram and tag #howsweeteats. You can also post a photo of your recipe to our facebook page.
I appreciate you so much!
I love you.
242 Comments on “Four Cheese Baked Skillet Rigatoni. {Video!}”
I just made this ahead of time, for dinner tonight, I also made the mistake of licking the spoon as i poured it into a cassarole dish! I don;t know how im gonna wait until the family gets home to have dinner. I had to call my husband to tell him i just made the most amazing mac & cheese he will ever taste. Maybe i”ll go get some lobster to add before i bake it!!!!! umum:)
Pingback: Baked Mac & Cheese with Panko Breadcrumbs | A Cedar Spoon | A Cedar Spoon
Pingback: Celebrate World Pasta Day
Uh…what is mascarapone????
Pingback: Four Cheese Baked Skillet Mini Rigs | diet food
Pingback: Fridge meme « Run, Shop, Travel
I REALLY wish I had seen this BEFORE I went to the grocery store today…. Me and the baby in my belly want this NOW!!
I made this for a big dinner for friends in for the holidays. I added some rotisserie chicken to the dish. It was so good. Everyone went back for seconds and thirds. My kids are asking when I’ll make it again.
omg this looks so good. I’m making it now. You should name is something else like ” “The Best in the Whole Wide World Mac & Cheese” because the name doesn’t do it justice. I usually don’t comment on posts, but this needs to be yelled out and everyone should try it. Thank you….thank you
Pingback: 31-Recipe Challenge: Day 3–Super Bowl Sunday! « Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Foodiness
I am definitely making this this weekend! and these photos are amazing!! i can practically taste it now…
Hey! I just made this for dinner tonight and it was AMAZING! during the entire meal my husband and i just couldn’t stop saying “i can’t believe how good this is!” thanks :)
Hahaha!! I love your description of the coffee jitters and cold sweats!! The mac and cheese could be confirmation of your magic powers.
Pingback: Blue Cheese Mac and Cheese. | How Sweet It Is
Oh yum, your pasta looks sooo good!!
I made this last night and it was beyond delicious! Thank you so much for a wonderful recipe.
Pingback: Four Cheese Baked Skillet Mini Rigs | Well Cooked
Pingback: Four Cheese Baked Skillet Mini Rigs | Well Cooked
Pingback: Meal Planning Monday: Week 3 – Simple, Real Family Dinners | The DIY Mommy
Pingback: Four Cheese Baked Skillet Rigatoni Recipe | the best recipes ever
Pingback: Four Cheese Baked Skillet Rigatoni | the best recipes ever
I made this recipe a few weeks ago and it was amazing! I was searching for a great mac ‘n cheese recipe after many failed attempts, and this is it. My family is skeptical when I make mac ‘n cheese because my previous attempts were either dry or lacked a good cheese flavor, but they couldn’t get enough of this! I’m actually making it again this weekend because it was so popular. I just used a regular baking dish because I don’t have a cash iron skillet. I also substituted cream cheese because mascarpone is more expensive. I would highly recommend this recipe! Thank you for posting it~
Pingback: Top 10 Best Italian Recipes
Pingback: 6 Delicious Italian Recipes Everyone Should Try - Exquisite Girl
I love recipes in a cast iron skillet. I puffy heart mac and cheese, totally going to make this!
Pingback: Top 10 Best Italian Recipes - Top Inspired
Oh my goodness! I made this last night with the cheeses I had on hand, which was smoked Gouda, mozz, cheddar, parm and cream cheese…it was amazing! I had big rigatoni noodles and the gooey sauce got all inside and was so yummy! And using my cast iron skillet made the sides and bottom get all chewy and beyond delicious! This is our favorite baked pasta dish so far and will definitely be a regular! Thanks so much !!!
Okay I haven’t made this recipe yet (but I will!)…I just had to say…your dialog is AMAZING! I think I enjoyed reading that as much as I’m going to enjoy making this food (did I mention that I LOVE to cook??)!
Pingback: Recipes to Try | Live and Learn
This looks soooo good! I love cheesey pasta! Someday I will give it a go, when I’m feeling up to getting all those ingredients!
I will make this tonight in an effort to use up lots of cheeses in my freezer. I am a foodie, and have an overload of stuff in cupboards and freezers, so for 6 months have been shopping my house to make meals. This will use up a lot of cheese, and provide a delicious meal at the same time! Thanks for the recipe, even though you had to go through a lot to cook it. Bad for you, good for me!
Success! I made this tonight for dinner after seeing this yesterday – I just had to try it! I was unable to add the Fontina but it still turned out absolutely delicious and creamy. Thanks for sharing this amazing and simple recipe! -Iva
Pingback: Four Cheese Baked Rigatoni | Delicious desserts recipes
Pingback: Four Cheese Baked Rigatoni | HEALTHY LIFE
I’m literally drooling and cracking up over your story double lols!
Pingback: Serve the Best Treats This Football Season in Your Mount Laurel Apartment | Mount Laurel Crossing | Mount Laurel NJ
No, I love you for this recipe!
Pingback: Four Cheese Baked Skillet Rigatoni | Tales from a 20-Something's Kitchen.
Pingback: Les pâtes : imaginez, créez et savourez ! | BestBuzzer
Pingback: 15 Mouthwatering Summer Recipes from Pinterest | hacker samurai
Pingback: Top 10 Best Italian Recipes
Pingback: We Gotta Eat, Too! | Oh, Hey Motherhood!
How do you clean your cast iron skillet after? I try to just use mine strictly for roasting veggies and cooking chicken(and I cook a lot of chicken). How do you get dairy off of it?
Pingback: 15 Mouthwatering Summer Recipes from Pinterest | Diets Buzz
Pingback: 15 Mouthwatering Summer Recipes from Pinterest | Only Viral
What a lovely recipe! :)
This is honestly the best macaroni and cheese I’ve ever had. Ever since I saw this recipe a few years ago, this is the only homemade mac and cheese I make. I’ve made it with both mascarpone and subbed that for cream cheese, and both are wonderful- just different textures. I have to ask- I live in Pittsburgh and have never seen mini rigs here, where on earth did you find them?!
hi bri! i found them at mcginnis sisters! i don’t remember the brand (they have a bunch of speciality pasta) but i’ll check next time i’m there!
Pingback: 5 Reasons Why We Love The Cold | Dreams by MG
I have beeon on the lookout for a really good mac n chesse recipe for years. I made this one and it was fabulous. I have already shared it with friends so there are several more homes enjoying your recipe. Thanks for sharing and for everyones comments.
This looks amazing but can it be prepared ahead of time, refrigerated and then baked later?