25 Easy Italian Dinner Recipes, From Soup & Pasta to Meat & Fish
Even when nonna's not around, you can still bring real Italian flavor to the table on a weeknight. These recipes are all you need—don't forget the vino!
Tomato Soup with Polenta
Thickened with polenta and cream, this soup makes a hearty meal—just add extra Parm and some crusty bread.
Tomato Minestrone Soup with Croutons
An Italian classic filling enough to be a meal.
Psghetti and Meatballs
Extra-lean hamburger and whole-wheat pasta transform an Italian favorite into a stealthily healthy meal.
Italian Hoagies
You'll raid your deli counter while grocery shopping for these hearty sandwiches!
Cacio e Pepe Mac 'n' Cheese with Chard
Two kinds of peppercorn (black and pink) balance the cheese, while adding chard lets you skip a salad.
Charred Eggplant & Meat Sauce with Paccheri
Broiling the eggplant speeds up the cooking—and adds a smoky, earthy element to the sauce.
Porchetta-Style Ragu
It only takes three or four days to make real porchetta! Oh, wait. THIS is one you can make fast, whenever you're in the mood.
Pappa al Pomodoro with Eggplant
Pappa al Pomodoro is a hearty puréée of tomatoes and toasted bread.
Pasta e Fagioli with Sausage
An easy, comforting soup with plenty of beans, sausage, and pasta!
Risotto
Cut an Italian classic down to size by replacing part of the rice with butternut squash for a beta-carotene boost and more fiber.
Creamy Three-Meat Ragu with Burrata & Pappardelle
This pasta is a total knockout—the kind of seriously delicious dinner for a night when you just want to curl up, all comfy, and conk out.
Easy Puttanesca with Shrimp & Cherry Tomatoes
Salty, spicy, slightly sweet, certainly shrimpy, super-speedy.
Italian Egg Drop Soup with Meatballs
Slowly drizzle an egg-water mixture into the simmering soup for a unique flavor and texture.
Pasta with Prosciutto and Melon
We took some inspiration from a classic Italian appetizer, prosciutto and melon. But in this dish the fruit is whipped into a creamy sauce and the prosciutto is fried into crunchy flecks!
Rib Eye Steaks with Gorgonzola Sauce & Kale-Walnut Vermicelli Rice
The name's a mouthful, the presentation is like a restaurant, and the trick is that this is eminently doable any night.
Red Pepper Pesto-and-Shrimp Pizzas
Make it on an Italian baguette so everyone gets their own personal pizza.
Vegetable Manicotti
Use lasagna noodles in place of manicotti, or skip the rolling altogether and toss the filling with cooked pasta shells.
Crispy-Skin Branzino with Brown Butter & Caper Sauce
The hardest part of this recipe is letting the fish dry out in the fridge for an hour.
Rachael Ray's Lasagna Soup
It's like lasagna, only it's a soup, and it's lighter, and it won't take hours to make. Genius!
Fusilli with Chicken and Tomato Sauce
Pre-cooked pulled chicken and marinara sauce means this weeknight meal can be ready in minutes.
Sicilian Sweet & Savory Bucatini with Broccoli Rabe
Anchovies and raisings? Saffron and pine nuts? It's all deeply Sicilian—and deeply satisfying.
Mezze Rigatoni all'Amatriciana a Modena
Otherwise known as "spaghetti with bacon and onions."
Pappardelle with Brown Butter Meat Sauce & Crispy Sage
Comforting enough for fall, light enough for spring.
Aglio e Olio with Lemon & Pecorino Breadcrumbs
This pure-peasant pasta is weeknight heaven.
Orecchiette with Broccoli Rabe Pesto
You know, pesto doesn't have to mean just basil.
