Stanley Tucci’s 6-Ingredient Pasta Casserole Is So Good He Eats It for Breakfast

Tell me if you’ve experienced this: you try to get ahead of your day by making your dinner in the morning. Your plan is to cook the meal now, then reheat it later so dinnertime runs smoothly. But, the dish comes out of the oven looking and smelling so good that you want to eat it right away. Do you eat it now for breakfast or save it for later? Stanley Tucci would say eat it immediately.

“Oh my god, and what time is it? It’s only 10 o’clock in the morning and I think I’m going to have it right now,” he said in a posted video.

He was talking about his six-ingredient pancetta-and-pea pasta casserole that he had just made. 

“Breakfast, brunch, or lunch? Not sure but it was f’ing delicious,” the caption reads.

We’re already fans of his recipes and definitely enjoy his cookware line, so we’re paying close attention here.

In the shared video, Tucci proudly showed off his creation that started with leftover farfalle pasta. He said he added the leftover pasta, sautéed onions, garlic, pancetta, and peas to a leftover béchamel sauce in a casserole dish. Then he dotted the pasta with butter and topped it with grated Parmesan cheese before baking it until golden brown.

I was immediately salivating when I saw the casserole, so I knew I had to recreate it—also at 10 a.m. for the full effect. However, I did go against the notion of the leftovers mainly because I don’t always have pancetta on hand—I’m not Stanley Tucci, after all—though next time I’d save myself a trip and just use regular bacon. I also made my own béchamel sauce, which didn’t take too long, but in a pinch, you could throw in a jar of your favorite creamy sauce.

Despite being loaded with béchamel and butter, this pasta feels surprisingly light and would make a great spring dinner. I do recommend adding the optional butter and cheese at the end for a richer, extra-cheesy finish.

No matter what, however, this pasta casserole is, indeed, f’ing delicious.

Stanley Tucci’s Pasta Casserole

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil or butter, or as needed
• 1/2 onion, finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 ounces pancetta, diced
• 6 ounces frozen peas
• 8 ounces cooked farfalle pasta
• 2 cups béchamel sauce (or other jarred creamy sauce)
• 2 tablespoons butter (optional)
• Parmesan cheese, freshly grated (optional)

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Heat olive oil or butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook until translucent, then add garlic and cook until fragrant. Stir in pancetta and frozen peas. Cook until warmed through and the pancetta has crisped up a bit.
3. Combine the cooked pasta, béchamel, and pancetta mixture in a casserole dish. Dot with butter and top with grated Parmesan cheese.
4. Bake, uncovered, until the sauce is bubbly and the top is lightly browned, about 20 minutes.