Description
Weeknight Baked Ziti brings comfort straight from your kitchen to the dinner table, melding pasta, sauce, and cheese into a crowd-pleasing meal that feels like a warm hug. Creamy, cheesy, and totally satisfying, this simple dish comes together faster than you can order takeout.
Ingredients
Scale
Pasta and Protein:
- 1 lb dry ziti
- 1 lb lean ground beef or mild Italian sausage
Cheese and Dairy:
- 1 lb ricotta cheese
- 1 ½ cups Parmesan cheese, grated and divided
- 2 cups mozzarella cheese, chopped into ¼-inch cubes and divided
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
Seasonings and Sauce:
- 4 cups marinara sauce
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Warm your oven to exactly 375°F. Salt a large pot of water and cook 1 lb dry ziti pasta for 8-9 minutes until perfectly al dente. Drain and set aside.
- In a large skillet, brown 1 lb ground beef over medium-high heat for 6-7 minutes, breaking meat into small crumbles. Drain excess fat.
- Whisk 2 eggs in a spacious mixing bowl. Add 1 lb ricotta cheese, 1 cup Parmesan, 1 cup mozzarella cubes, 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning, and ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes.
- Pour 4 cups marinara sauce into the cheese mixture. Stir 1 teaspoon cornstarch and 1 cup heavy cream into the sauce until smooth.
- Spread a thin layer of sauce mixture across the bottom of a 9×13-inch baking dish. Arrange half the cooked ziti pasta over the sauce.
- Distribute the browned meat evenly across the pasta layer. Cover with half the remaining sauce mixture.
- Repeat layering with remaining pasta and sauce. Sprinkle ½ cup Parmesan and 1 cup mozzarella cubes across the top.
- Cover the dish with aluminum foil. Bake at 375°F for 30 minutes. Remove foil and continue baking 15 more minutes until cheese turns golden and edges bubble.
- Allow the ziti to rest 10 minutes before serving. This helps the layers set and makes cutting easier.
Notes
- Drain pasta just before it reaches complete doneness to prevent mushiness during baking.
- For a lighter version, swap heavy cream with half-and-half or whole milk and reduce cheese quantities.
- Ground turkey works perfectly as a leaner protein alternative to beef or sausage.
- Prep ingredients ahead of time to make assembly faster and smoother during busy weeknights.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Category: Baked
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 6 to 8
- Calories: 575 kcal
- Sugar: 7 g
- Sodium: 680 mg
- Fat: 32 g
- Saturated Fat: 17 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 13 g
- Trans Fat: 0.5 g
- Carbohydrates: 38 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 40 g
- Cholesterol: 160 mg