Cheesecake Factory Four-Cheese Pasta: The Complete Recipe

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Published: 10/26/2022 | Updated: 04/04/2024

The Cheesecake Factory is one of the most popular restaurant chains in the United States. Most modern-day Americans grew up eating delectable dishes from the food chain restaurant. 

One of the top-selling food items on its menu is the four-cheese pasta that makes your mouth water.

As the name suggests, this pasta has a burst of flavors from four different kinds of cheese. Moreover, the marinara sauce in the mix perfectly complements the smooth texture of the dish and adds a tangy twist. It is a common misconception that tasty dishes like these can be hard to make. However, you can recreate this creamy goodness at home with our quick and easy four-cheese pasta recipe.

The Basics

• Recipe – Cheesecake Factory Four-cheese Pasta
• Duration – 40 minutes
• Servings – 4

Equipment and Prep Time

This recipe requires minimal prep time and equipment. It is perfect for hectic days when you don’t have time to cook entire meals but still need homemade nutrition. You can make this four-cheese pasta recipe in under 40 minutes. Moreover, your post-cooking cleanup time is cut in half with little use of cooking vessels.

For this recipe, you will need the following:

• Large cooking pot
• 2-3 mixing bowls
• Colander
• Knife
• Wooden spoon
• Small whisk

Ingredients

• 12 ounces penne pasta
• Ricotta cheese (¾ cup + ¼ cup, separate)
• Romano cheese (⅛ cup, shredded)
• Parmesan cheese (½ cup)
• Mozzarella cheese (½ cup, shredded)
• Mozzarella pearls (optional)
• Two eggs
• 4 ½ cups crushed tomatoes
• 3-4 tsp olive oil
• Four garlic cloves
• 1 tsp milk
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 tsp dried basil
• 2 tsp fresh basil leaves
• 1 tsp oregano
• Salt and pepper to taste

Note: These ingredients will help you replicate the taste of the original four-cheese pasta. However, you can add your twist to it by opting for other pasta. For instance, you can opt for other pasta. Although, short pasta is preferable to bring out the full flavors. You can skip romano cheese or replace it with another tangy, crisp cheese like cheddar.

Recreating the Cheesecake Factory Four-Cheese Pasta

Once you have assembled and ready the recipe ingredients, you can start cooking. We have divided the recipe into five simple bits to make things easier.

• Boiling the Pasta

Firstly, you must start by boiling the pasta. Add the penne pasta to boiling water and let it boil at medium flame. The original dish leaves the pasta slightly undercooked since the cheese and sauce soften it later. So, ensure you use the right amount of water. Do not overcook it.

Once the pasta is cooked, pour it into a colander and leave it to drain. You can prepare the base sauce while the pasta drains.

• Creating the Sauce

The sauce is the most vital part of any pasta dish. It brings the most flavor and provides the perfect contrast to the smooth texture of the cheese mix. While our recipe recommends using crushed tomatoes, you can also use tomato sauce. Although this does not alter the flavor, using crushed tomatoes would make the dish more similar to the original since the latter has a coarse texture.

You can use the same cooking pot for the sauce as you used to boil the pasta. After drying the pot properly, add olive oil and let it heat. Once the oil warms, chop and add the garlic cloves. Saute the garlic till it turns fragrant before adding the tomatoes. Lastly, add salt, pepper, sugar, oregano, and dried basil.

Once you have added everything, cover the pot and let it simmer for ten minutes.

• Mixing the Cheese

To save time, you can prepare the cheese mix in a large mixing bowl while the sauce is cooking. Add ¾ cup ricotta cheese to the bowl, followed by eggs, shredded mozzarella, parmesan, and romano cheese. Whisk it well and add some pepper to taste. 

• Preparing the Garnish

In a separate mixing bowl, add the remaining ricotta cheese and milk. Whisk the mix till it turns thick with a jelly-like consistency. Also, finely chop the fresh basil leaves and set them aside.

• Putting It All Together

Add the four-cheese mixture to the sauce once the latter thickens. After stirring it well for a few minutes, add the pasta and mix well. Cook till the pasta is adequately coated in the sauce. You can also add the mozzarella pearls on top and melt them for better flavor.

Garnish the pasta with basil leaves and the ricotta cheese mix, and serve. You can opt for another type of cheese if you dislike ricotta cheese. The milk and eggs wash out the flavor, so it is not overpowering. However, you shouldn’t skip the cheese since it contributes greatly to the dish’s unique taste.

How to Make Your Dish Look More Authentic

The taste is not the only factor determining whether our recipe resembles the original Cheesecake Factory delicacy. You can make the dish even more authentic by making it look like the former. After you serve the pasta in equal portions, garnish them with globs of the ricotta cheese mix. Ensure the dollop falls into the center of the plate as it does in the Cheesecake Factory serving. Before sprinkling with the chopped basil leaves, you can also top the dish with a couple of whole leaves. If you garnish it right, an outsider might not even tell that your four-cheese pasta is homemade.

Cheesecake Factory Four-Cheese Pasta – Final Thoughts

This recipe is perfect if you want to recreate one of the top-selling items on the Cheesecake Factory’s menu — the four-cheese pasta. You can either add your touch to the dish or follow the recipe thoroughly for an authentic taste. All you need to do is add your pasta and cheese mix to the flavorful sauce. Also, you can get creative with the garnishing and make the dish look like the original. You can master the recipe with time and practice and save your weekly trips to the Cheesecake Factory.

 

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