Baked Ziti Recipe
Ingredients:
1 lb ziti
1 lb Hot Italian sausage
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 (28 oz) can tomato sauce
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped
8 oz cream cheese, softened
16 oz cottage cheese
1/2 cup sour cream
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups Parmesan cheese, freshly grated and divided
2 cups mozzarella cheese, chopped into 1/4-inch cubes and divided
Fresh basil, chopped, for serving
Sslt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375°F and grease a 9×13-inch baking dish with nonstick spray. Set aside.
In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook the pasta 2 minutes less than package instructions. Drain and drizzle with olive oil to prevent sticking. Set aside.
In a large skillet, cook the sausage over medium-high heat until no longer pink, about 6 minutes. Drain excess fat if needed.
Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in oregano, basil, salt, and pepper. Add tomato sauce and diced tomatoes. Lower heat to medium and cook until mixture bubbles. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in sugar and fresh basil. Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Add eggs, cottage cheese, and sour cream, and mix until well combined. Stir in 1 cup Parmesan and 1 cup mozzarella.
Add 1 cup of the red sauce and drained pasta to the cottage cheese mixture and stir to combine. Transfer to prepared baking dish.
Top with remaining red sauce, followed by the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan.
Cover the dish with foil sprayed with nonstick spray. Bake for 30 minutes, uncover, and bake for an additional 25 minutes. Broil 2 minutes if you’d like the cheese to brown.
Let sit for 10 minutes before serving. Garnish with chopped basil and enjoy!
Servings: 8 servings