Please yourself Pasta Bake!

V  I'm classing this one as a vegetarian dish because, although the version I cooked last night (pictured below) does contain meat, the whole point of a "please yourself pasta bake" is that you decide what goes in it!  One of the simplest dishes to prepare and serve (plus it freezes quite well), a pasta bake takes roughly an hour from scratch and needs only a green salad accompaniment ... plus a little garlic bread if you so desire.

Simply place dried pasta in the bottom of a large casserole dish and add some passata, water and flavourings; I used sliced red peppers, chopped garlic, dried mixed herbs, smoked paprika and a dash of Worcestershire sauce.  (Remember this is the liquid that the pasta will be cooking in, so make sure there is plenty - alternatively, you could use a ready-made bottled sauce, which will give you exact measurements.)  Give it all a thorough stirring and place uncovered into a med-high oven for half an hour.

Halfway through this time, sauté any ingredients that require cooking (I used smoked bacon, chorizo and mushrooms ... other ideas are courgettes, onions, diced chicken, etc).  Take the bake from the oven, add extra liquid if necessary, tip in the cooked ingredients along with any others that don't require cooking (tinned sweetcorn, frozen peas, tinned tuna, etc) and give another good stir to mix it all together ... remember to check to liquid at every stage; it should be enough to cook the pasta without drowning it!

Finally, top it with some grated cheese.  I used cheddar and a little Parmesan on this occasion, but lumps of softer cheeses work well, as does the stringy pizza-like topping of mozzarella.  Put it all back in the oven for 15-30 minutes, until the topping is melted and all the ingredients are piping hot.  Enjoy!