Baked Cavatelli...the way my daddy taught me!!!


2 Cans tomato puree
3 small cans tomato paste
3-4 cups skim mozzarella cheese
2-3 packages frozen cavatelli
1 package pre-cooked swedish meatballs
Kraft parmesan cheese (the kind you shake out of the can)
Salt, pepper, oregano, sugar, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, onion powder(all spices to taste)





Mix the tomato puree and tomato paste inside of a medium-large pot. Using the three smaller cans, fill with water 3 times and mix with the tomato puree/paste. Mix until smooth. Turn stove on medium heat and cover the pot with a splatter screen (or cover if you don't have a splatter screen). Once the sauce warms up, start adding your spices. Small amounts of salt, pepper and oregano. One teaspoon of sugar to cut down the acidity of the tomatoes in the sauce. Add just enough cayenne pepper to give it a kick. Add as much garlic/onion powder as you like, be sure to test it after you stir it in! You'll be able to tell what you need more of. After adding your spices, mix in about 1/3-1/2 cup of the parmesan cheese. Trust me, it makes the sauce absolutely wonderful. Cover the sauce back up and turn the heat to medium-low and let simmer for about 2 hours. (yes, this one takes some time, but it's well worth it!) Make sure you stir it every so often to keep it from burning to the bottom of the pot! As it heats up, keep testing it to see if you need any more of the afore-metioned spices. Add as you see fit.


About an hour afterwards, get out the bag of swedish meatballs. Preheat the oven to the temperature specified on the bag. Get a large cookie sheet and line it with aluminum foil. Place as many meatballs on the sheet as you can fit and bake them for the amount of time noted on the package. Once those are done, let them sit outside of the oven for 3-4 minutes, then put them all into the sauce, and mix them in well.


When the sauce is about an hour and a half through,turnthe oven to 425 degrees. Fill a large pot a little more than halfway with hot water. Add a pinch of salt to the water to speed up the boiling. Turn the heat on high and wait until the water comes to a rolling boil. Once it boils, turn the heat down to medium and dump in the frozen cavatelli. Keep stirring until the pasta is al-dente (firm to the bite). Once that's done, drain the water from the pot and keep the cavatelli in the strainer.


Find a large rectangular baking dish. Shake all the excess water from the pasta and dump it into the dish. Using a ladle, scoop the sauce and meatballs from the pot on top of the cavatelli, making sure every inch of the top is covered. Store any extra sauce in tupperware containers or freeze it to use later (up to a month). Add liberal amounts of mozzarella cheese, again, until the entire top is covered, or as much as you can cover. Pop the dish in the oven and bake until the cheese is melted and golden-brown on top.


Serve it up with some breadsticks or garlic bread and there you go! If you wish to make a side salad also, that adds a great touch to the meal!


Me and the fiancee have had this so many times and I haven't failed him yet!