Recipe: Ranch Pesto Rigatoni Bake

Ranch Pesto Rigatoni Bake
1 box rigatoni (I didn't have rigatoni and used ziti, it was fine) 1/2 cup ranch dressing 1/4 cup prepared pesto 28 oz can diced tomatoes, drained and slightly rinsed 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided (I only ended up using 1 cup, see note below) parsley

Cook and drain rigatoni, return to pot. Stir in ranch dressing, pesto, diced tomatoes, and one cup shredded mozzarella. Transfer pasta to a 2 quart baking dish. Top with remaining mozzarella and parsley. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Remove foil and bake an additional 5 minutes until cheese is completely melted. 

*My notes: I thought the extra cup of cheese on top sounded like an excessive amount of cheese, so I just totally omitted that and it was good.  I do think it would have been too cheesy or too much like a traditional baked ziti if you did that.  Leaving the cheese out left it with more of just a light sauce. This ended up being a hit, and the recipe as is made a ton, we got 2 dinners out of it.  Original recipe found on pinterest, from the Mostly Homemade Mom blog.