A saucy, cheesy Baked Ziti Recipe! With a robustly flavored homemade tomato sauce (made with Italian sausage), ricotta, and melty, bubbly mozzarella cheese, this is comfort food at its finest. Be sure to check out the how-to VIDEO at the bottom of the recipe!
2Tablespoons+ 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oildivided
5clovesminced garlic1 heaping Tablespoon
1onionfinely chopped (about 1 cup)
1lb(455g)Italian sausageI’ve used Sweet Italian and Mild
2teaspoonsItalian seasoning
1teaspoononion powder
¾teaspoongarlic powder
¾teaspoonsalt
¾teaspoonpepper
¼teaspoonred pepper flakesoptional
28oz(680g)tomato sauce
14oz(400g)can fire roasted diced tomatoesundrained
3teaspoonssugar
¼cupthinly sliced fresh basilloosely packed
1(280g)heaping cup ricotta cheese
1 ½cups(170g)shredded Mozzarella cheese
⅓cup(60g)grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350F and lightly butter the sides and bottom of a 9x13 casserole dish. Set aside.
Prepare pasta according to package instructions, cook al dente. Drain, rinse under cold water, and mix with two teaspoons of olive oil.
1 lb Ziti or Penne noodles, 2 Tablespoons + 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
Meanwhile, prepare your sauce. Heat 2 Tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat in a large saucepan. Add onion and cook until translucent (3-5 minutes). Add garlic and cook until fragrant (30 seconds).
5 cloves minced garlic, 1 onion
Add Italian sausage and cook, crumbling, until mostly browned. Once sausage is mostly browned, add Italian seasoning, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes, stirring and cooking until sausage is entirely browned.
1 lb Italian sausage, 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning, 1 teaspoon onion powder, ¾ teaspoon garlic powder, ¾ teaspoon salt, ¾ teaspoon pepper, ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
Add tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and sugar. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring frequently, until slightly thickened.
28 oz tomato sauce, 14 oz can fire roasted diced tomatoes, 3 teaspoons sugar
Remove from heat and stir in basil.
¼ cup thinly sliced fresh basil
Spread a small amount of pasta sauce (several spoonfuls, see image in the post or video for visual) on the bottom of prepared casserole dish.
Layer the sauce with half of the noodles (if some have stuck together while sitting, they should be easy to break apart with your hands). Top with half of the remaining sauce and use a spoon to spread evenly over noodles.
Dollop ricotta evenly over sauce. Top evenly with remaining noodles and then remaining sauce.
1 heaping cup ricotta cheese
Top with mozzarella cheese and grated parmesan. Spray a piece of foil lightly with cooking spray, cover ziti and bake for 15-20 minutes. Uncover and continue to cook another 5-10 minutes or until bubbly.
1 ½ cups shredded Mozzarella cheese, ⅓ cup grated parmesan cheese