Baked ziti

By tsusanchang

Ingredients

• 1 pound dried ziti
• 1 pound (about 2 scant cups) ricotta
• 1 pound part-skim mozzarella, block or shredded
• 1/2 pound Italian sausage (optional)
• 1/2 tablespoon olive oil (if using the sausage)
• 4 cups (32 ounce jar) marinara
• 6-12 leaves fresh basil
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan

Details

Preparation time 25mins
Cooking time 60mins

Preparation

Step 1

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Fill a large pot with water for the pasta, salt liberally, and bring to a boil. Cook the ziti according to package instructions till just al dente, 7-9 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, drain the ricotta in a sieve. If the mozzarella's not shredded, cut it into 1/4" dice or shred it coarsely on a box grater. In a small saucepan, warm the marinara just until bubbles break the surface, and shred the basil into it.

3. [If using the sausage.] Meanwhile, dice or crumble the sausage. Warm the olive oil over medium heat till it just coats the pan. Cook the sausage till it loses its pink color (it's not necessary to brown it, although you can if you wish). Drain the ziti.

4. Oil a 9" x 13" baking dish. Spread about a quarter of the marinara sauce over the bottom. Scatter half the ziti and half the shredded or diced mozzarella over the marinara. For the second layer, spread half of the remaining marinara and half of the ricotta over the previous layer. For the third layer, spread the remaining ziti and mozzarella over the previous layer and spread the remaining ricotta and marinara over that. Finally, sprinkle the Parmesan overall.

5. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the top is just bubbling and golden. Remove from the oven and cool for 15 minutes before cutting and serving.