Baked Macaroni Pie with Ricotta Stuffed Meatballs

A good friend of mine who has a talent and passion for cooking fine food shared this cooking blog with me several months ago.  I've shared it with a few other passionate foodie friends and we've all been experimenting with many of the Proud Italian Cook's delicious and creative recipes.  So far I've made her Eggplant patties, Summer veggie slaw, Pasta pizza, Rosemary olive oil pita strips with Tuscan white bean dip and Caprese tart. Some of my friends have made other recipes on her site as well.    I will tell you this... every single recipe that my friends and I have made are superb and I will be sure to make them again and again.

Below is her Ricotta stuffed meatballs recipe and my pie directions.  Kudos and much thanks to the Proud Italian Cook . 

Baked Macaroni Pie:

Butter a 9" spring form cheesecake pan.  Boil 1lb of pasta according to directions on the package.  Drain pasta and return to pan, drizzle in some olive oil to keep it moist and mix in a hand full of Parmesan cheese being sure to coat evenly. In your spring form pan, cover the bottom with a layer of sauce and follow up with alternating layers of (a) cooked rigatoni lying flat , (b) sauce, (C) thin layer of ricotta, and (D) shredded mozzarella cheese.  Make sure you push each layer down nice and tight and to cover the entire circumference of the pan.   Keep layering until you run out of pasta. Top the last layer with more sauce and a layer of mozzarella cheese.  Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes. Cool on your counter for at least 20 minutes.  Run a knife around the edge of your cheesecake pan before removing the outer rim.  Release and cut into nice pie shape wedges!

For the Stuffed Meatballs:

http://prouditaliancook.blogspot.com/2011/03/ricotta-stuffed-meatballs.html