Easy Baked Ziti

Baked Ziti with Ricotta is Italian comfort food at its finest! This simple recipe is easy to make and will feed a crowd.

Here’s a dish that will be a winner any day of the week: Ziti in the oven! This Italian-American casserole is bursting with savory flavors and warm nostalgia. Its surface is filled with pockets of seasoned ricotta, lakes of tomato and garlic sauce, and punctuated by sticky strands of mozzarella. Side effect: The floating aroma makes your kitchen smell fantastic! These baked noodles are great for feeding a crowd, or half a recipe makes for a cozy romantic dinner. What are you waiting for?

Baked ziti ingredients

Baked ziti appear to be an Italian-American invention, although the tradition of baked pasta dates back to late medieval Italy. As with any classic recipe, there are many ways to make baked ziti. Most recipes involve pasta, tomato sauce and a ricotta cheese and parmesan filling, topped with mozzarella and cooked to a bubbly. Many include sausage, but ours is a vegetarian version that’s an easier step but is still packed with flavor. What you need for this baked ziti recipe:

• Ziti noodles (or penne or rigatoni)
• Garlic
• fennel seeds
• olive oil
• Marinara sauce and fire roasted tomatoes
• Ricotta, parmesan and mozzarella
• Lemon peel

The keys to taste

This baked ziti recipe is easy, with a few simple tricks for great flavor. Here’s what to take away from this recipe:

• It uses both marinara sauce and canned fire-roasted tomatoes. This way you can complement the flavor of the store-bought marinara with your own homemade flavor. Below are some notes on fire roasted tomatoes.
• Fennel is reminiscent of the taste of sausage. You can do without the sausage here: the use of fennel seeds gives the inside a meaty, hearty aroma (fennel seeds are also used in Italian sausages!).
• Lemon zest adds brightness. The lemon gives the flavors a nice boost!

Find fire roasted tomatoes for better flavor

This Baked Ziti uses a combination of store-bought marinara sauce and homemade flavors to make a quick homemade sauce. The key? Canned tomatoes roasted over fire. Here’s what you should know about this strain:

• Roasted Tomatoes are a type of canned tomatoes that are roasted over a flame before canning. They are sold by several different brands; look for them in the canned tomatoes section of your local grocery store. We love Muir Glen.
• Fire roasted tomatoes taste sweet straight out of the can. That means you can cook them for less time than regular tomatoes.
• What can I substitute for fire roasted tomatoes? Use the highest quality canned tomatoes you can find. Remember to add 1 teaspoon sugar and a touch of smoked paprika (½ teaspoon) if you have it to round out the flavor.

Cook the ziti al dente shortly beforehand

The key to baked noodles? Cook the pasta al dente shortly beforehand. Baked noodles cook while they’re in the oven, so you’ll want to remove them from the boiling water just before you normally do. Try about 1-2 minutes before it’s al dente, so it should still be crispy.

Note: Normally the instructions on the pasta package say to overcook a little! So cook it about 3 minutes before the package directions say.

Make half a recipe in a 9 x 9

This baked ziti recipe makes a large 9 x 13″ casserole that feeds at least 8 servings. Don’t feel like such a large portion? Make half a recipe in 9 x 9! It works just as well, especially since these pastas are tastier the day they’re made. But it also works as leftovers!

store leftovers

Leftover baked ziti will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. These baked noodles taste best on the days they are made, as the noodles can get a little soggy over time. (All the more reason not to overcook pasta!) If you’re eating leftovers, add a few pinches of salt and reheat in a pan to bring out the flavors.

What to serve with baked ziti

This Baked Ziti makes a great meal for a crowd or an intimate romantic dinner (in half recipe). Here are some side dishes that go well together:

This Baked Ziti Recipe is…

Vegetarian. For gluten-free pasta, use gluten-free pasta.