Skillet Baked Zita with Sausage

By dizzybetts

Ingredients

• 1 (28-oz) can diced, plain or Italian tomatoes
• 1 lb Italian sausage (hot or sweet), casings removed
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 cups water
• 12 oz ziti
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 oz Parmesan cheese, grated
• 1/4 chopped fresh parsley
• 4 oz mozzarella cheese, shredded

Details

Servings 1
Adapted from traceysculinaryadventures.blogspot.com

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Set a 12-inch skillet over medium heat and add the sausage. Cook until the sausage is no longer pink, using a wooden spoon to break the sausage up and stir occasionally. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook just until fragrant, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Stir in the tomatoes and the salt (if you're not using a nonstick pan, now is a good time to scrape the bottom of the pan to release the browned bits). Reduce the heat to medium-low and allow the mixture to simmer gently for about 10 minutes, or until the tomatoes don't taste raw anymore.

Add the water and pasta to the pan (the pan will probably be quite full, just stir gently to prevent overflow). Cover the pan and turn the heat up to medium to medium-high (adjust as necessary to maintain a vigorous simmer). Cook, stirring frequently to prevent the pasta from sticking to the bottom of the pan, for about 15 minutes, or until the pasta is tender. The pasta will not have absorbed all the liquid in the pan.

Add the heavy cream, Parmesan cheese, and parsley to the pan. Stir to incorporate, then season to taste with salt and pepper. Top the pasta with the mozzarella cheese then transfer the pan to the oven and bake for about 10-12 minutes, or until the cheese has melted and browned.