Cheesy Baked Tortellini

Let me guess... this last week left before Christmas left you feeling a little stressed? :) With all of the last minute shopping, baking, and card sending (yeah, my cards are patiently waiting to be mailed still), dinner probably isn't something you want to think about.
If you fall in this category (and you like pasta), then you'll like this recipe. It's incredibly easy. In fact, it's SO easy that if you wanted to shake things up a bit (and sub with ravioli or add meat or something), then you have total freedom. But we'll stick with the basic version for now.

Cheesy Baked Tortellini

Original recipe by Giada de Laurentis

(photo courtesy of Food Network)

Ingredients

• Olive oil
• 2 cups marinara sauce
• 1/3 cup mascarpone cheese
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves  (you can use dried, it won't hurt anything)
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme leaves (same here)
• 1 pound purchased cheese tortellini
• 2 ounces thinly sliced smoked mozzarella (I just used regular, but I bet the smoked makes it taste richer)
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly oil an 8x8x2-inch baking dish.

Whisk the sauce, mascarpone cheese, parsley and thyme in a large bowl to blend. Cook the tortellini in a large pot of boiling salted water until just tender, about 2 minutes. Drain. Add the tortellini to the sauce and toss to coat. Transfer the tortellini mixture to the prepared baking dish. Top the mixture with the smoked mozzarella and Parmesan. Cover and bake until the sauce bubbles and the cheeses on top melt, about 30 minutes.