Baked Ziti

Why We Love This Dish

This homemade baked ziti is a step above the others because you control every element, from the savory homemade sauce and juicy Italian sausage to the creamy ricotta mixture.

While this recipe is made from scratch, the steps are simple and can be prepped in advance, making it an easy weeknight dinner. This family-friendly meal is also kid-friendly; simply adjust the spice level of the sausage to suit your family’s needs.

Perfect for meal prep, you can make this dish ahead of time and keep it in the refrigerator or freezer. It’s ideal for large families or for having leftovers for the week.

Key Ingredient Notes

Pasta – Ziti is obviously the most common pasta to choose, but penne, fusilli, or rigatoni will also work.

Olive Oil – you can use a mild and smooth olive oil or another neutral oil like avocado oil.

Tomatoes – Use a can of crushed tomatoes, fire roasted or San Marzano will yield the best flavor.

Tomato Sauce – make sure to use plain tomato sauce, without any flavor added. If you can find low sodium or no salt added one, that will be your best bet. And remember to use tomato sauce, not tomato paste.

Herbs – Dried oregano and fresh basil and fresh parsley will create a great aroma and flavor.

Sugar – White granulated sugar adds just a touch of sweetness and balances out the acidity in the sauce.

Meat – I like to use spicy Italian sausage, but you could use sweet or mild if you’d prefer.

Cheeses – A blend of whole milk ricotta, shredded mozzarella, and freshly grated parmesan are what you’ll need to make this mixture deliciously cheesy.

Toppings: Cheeses – The more, the merrier, right? You’ll need freshly grated parmesan cheese and shredded mozzarella to top this dish. Italian Herb Seasoning – if you don’t have Italian seasoning on hand, you can substitute with herbs you most likely have in the pantry already. The most important ones are basil and oregano. Most Italian seasonings on the market have the same general mix of basil, oregano, rosemary, marjoram, and sage.

How To Make Baked Ziti

There are four components to this dish – the pasta, the sauce, the meat mixture, and the ricotta mixture. Once they’re all made, just assemble, and bake!

1. Make the spaghetti sauce recipe (You can also make Instant Pot spaghetti sauce):

Let’s start with the pasta sauce. Preheat your pot and add a little olive oil, then sauté the onion and carrots. Stir in the garlic before adding crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, seasonings and herbs.

Cook covered on medium-low temperature for about 20 minutes, until veggies are all soft. Make sure to stir from time to time. Take off heat. Use an immersion blender or transfer it into a blender to blend smooth.

Cook the pasta: While that’s cooking, go ahead and boil the pasta! Cook until the pasta is al dente, then strain, and set aside.

2. Make the meat mixture:

To make the meat mixture, first preheat a pan with a little olive oil. Sauté onions until soft, stir in the garlic, and cook until fragrant. Add the Italian sausage and break it up as as you can while it cooks. Cook the sausage until it’s completely cooked through, then remove from the heat. Stir 3 cups of the homemade pasta sauce into the meat mixture and add some red pepper flakes. Mix cooked pasta with meat mixture until evenly coated.

3. Make the ricotta mixture: To make the ricotta mixture, simply mix together the cheeses with the herbs and seasonings until smooth.

4. Assemble Baked Ziti:

Spread the remaining pasta sauce evenly across the bottom of a casserole dish. Add half of the cheese mixture in dollops.

Spread the pasta/meat mixture evenly over the sauce and ricotta. Add the remaining ricotta mixture in dollops across the pasta. Sprinkle some fresh grated parmesan cheese and shredded mozzarella. Bake at 350°F for 20-25 minutes.

Recipe Substitution and Variations To Try

Cheeses – For the best results, use shredded whole milk mozzarella and fresh grated parmesan. You can also use shredded Italian cheese mix for an even cheesier flavor variety! You can mix in some Asiago with parmesan or Fontina with mozzarella. Both flavorful options.

Meat – If you don’t want to use Italian sausage, you could opt for ground beef, ground pork, ground turkey, or a combination of beef and pork, or beef and sausage. If you choose turkey, use lean, not extra lean meat, or it’ll dry out. For beef, use 85/15, as leaner options will also be dry.

To Make This Baked Ziti Gluten Free: You only need to make one gluten free substation and that is pasta. Use gluten free penne pasta and I recommend the brand Tinkyada over most other brands. Many gluten free pasta options break apart and crumble easily and this brands stands up to cooking extremely well. All other ingredients should be gluten free already but double check the packaging just in case.

What to do with leftover ricotta?

This recipe calls for 12 oz of ricotta, and the container is usually 15 oz. If you like ricotta cheese, feel free to add the whole 15 oz of ricotta. However, I find it a to be a bit too much and it overpowers the other flavors.

You can always use all of the ricotta if you’d like or use the leftover 3 oz. (which is really not that little) in other ways! Use for leftover ricotta in delicious recipes like Ricotta Pancakes, Easy Ricotta Doughnuts, and more! You can even toss it into pound cake batter, add it to a quiche recipes, egg muffins, flatbreads, or use it to stuff French toast.

Can I use cottage cheese instead of ricotta?

Yes you can! Cottage cheese does have a different consistency from ricotta and contains more liquid but it can be substituted. To use cottage cheese, make sure to use small curd cottage cheese or you can pulse it just a few times in a food processor to make curdles smaller. (You can also do it by hand with a fork.) Also, make sure to strain the cottage cheese to get rid of excess liquid.

Make Ahead Storing and Reheating Instructions

Storing: Cool the baked ziti completely before refrigerating. Store in an airtight container or the original dish (covered tightly) in the refrigerator for 3 to 5 days.

Reheating: Microwave: Reheat individual portions. Oven: Reheat larger portions in a covered, oven-safe dish at 325∘F for up to 20 minutes.

Make Ahead:

• Sauce Only: Prepare the sauce and store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours. Reheat the sauce before combining it with the pasta.
• Full Dish: Assemble the entire dish (without baking), cool it, cover tightly, and refrigerate for up to one day. When ready to cook, add 5-10 minutes to the original baking time.

How To Freeze Baked Ziti?

You can easily make this a meal prep dinner and prepare a few batches for freezing! If you plan to freeze your baked ziti, use aluminum pans to assemble the dish:

• Assemble the unbaked ziti in a freezer-safe aluminum pan and let it cool completely.
• Press plastic/cling wrap against the surface of the ziti, then wrap the entire pan tightly in foil (maybe even 2 layers of freezing for longer). Label, date, and freeze for up to 2 months.
• Thaw in the refrigerator for about 24 hours.
• Bake the thawed ziti uncovered at 350F for 30-35 minutes. If the top is browning too fast, loosely cover it with aluminum foil.

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More Comforting Italian Recipes To Try

• Spaghetti and Meatballs
• Italian Meatballs
• Stuffed Shells
• Ricotta Cheesecake
• Vegetable Lasagna Recipe