This easy baked ziti recipe is a fabulous no-stress, no-fail dinner recipe that tastes great, looks beautiful, and couldn't be simpler to throw together.
Course Dinner
Cuisine Italian
Prep Time 5 minutesminutes
Cook Time 40 minutesminutes
Total Time 45 minutesminutes
Servings 4to 6 servings
Calories 494kcal
Author Tracy
Ingredients
Special Equipment
Large oven-safe skillet with a lid
Baked Ziti
1tablespoonolive oil
8ounces(about 2⅔ cups) uncooked zitipenne, or rigatoni
1poundItalian sausagemild or hot, casings removed
6clovesgarlicpressed or minced
Pinchred pepper flakes
214-ounce cans crushed tomatoes
Salt and pepper
⅓cupheavy cream
½cup(2oz) shredded Parmesan
1teaspoondried basil
1½cup(6oz) shredded mozzarella
Instructions
Start Pasta
Preheat oven to 475°F.
Bring a medium pot of lightly salted water to a boil and cook ziti according to package instructions until just barely al dente. Don’t overcook the pasta as it will become too soft after baking. Drain and set aside.
Sauce
While your water boils and pasta cooks, in a large, oven-safe skillet with a lid, heat oil over medium heat. Brown sausage, breaking it into crumbles as it cooks. If there is a lot of grease in the pan, drain sausage or use a paper towel to absorb some of the grease.
Stir in garlic and red pepper flakes and cook for 30 seconds. Add tomatoes and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Turn heat up to medium-high and bring to a simmer. Once simmering, reduce heat to medium-low and cover. Simmer, covered, for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir in cooked pasta, cream, Parmesan, and basil. Add more salt and pepper to taste.
Bake
Sprinkle mozzarella over the top and bake for 10 to 15 minutes until cheese is melted and bubbly. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Approximate nutritional information is for 6 servings.