Easy Baked Ziti

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Need an easy to make meal that can feed a crowd?   Try our tasty Baked Ziti pasta topped with cheese and made with marinara or meat sauce.

A plate of Baked Ziti with a slice of bread.

This recipe originally published in January 2011.

As you know I love all things pasta.   It’s one of those comfort dishes that I make whenever I’ve had a bad day, it’s cold outside, or I just want something easy to make.

One of the great things about baked ziti is that you can make a huge pan of it to enjoy for several days.  You can also size it down and only make half of a pan if you don’t want a ton of leftovers.

What is Ziti?

Ziti is a type of pasta from from Italy. It is a medium-sized, tube-shaped pasta, often used in baked dishes. Ziti is similar to penne but doesn’t have the ridges.  It also has straight-cut ends which makes it smooth and ideal for holding sauces, especially in baked pasta dishes.

A baking dish of ziti and sauce.

I realize I already have several baked ziti recipes on the blog but there’s always room for more! A classic recipe is Baked Ziti with Meat Sauce.  I also have this really tasty vegetarian Eggplant Parmesan Baked Ziti.  In the summer I like making Baked Ziti with Summer Vegetables.

Baked ziti can be easily made with a box of ziti noodles, a jar of marinara sauce, and some mozzarella cheese on top.   My recipe is a little more complex than that and it tastes a whole lot better.

I think that when plain marinara sauce is used in the ziti it often leaves it dry and quite bland. I like a creamier, cheesier marinara sauce with my ziti. That’s why I add in both ricotta cheese and sour cream.

This time I made my baked ziti with a creamy meat sauce.   I used a pound of ground beef added to the ziti which upped the protein and the hardiness of this pasta dish.

Do I have to make meat sauce?

No!   If you want to keep this recipe vegetarian simply omit the ground beef.   Pour the marinara sauce into a pan with the ricotta cheese and sour cream and mix to make a creamy marinara sauce instead.

Ingredients to make Baked Ziti

Ingredients:

  • ziti pasta noodles
  • ground beef (optional)
  • marinara sauce
  • garlic cloves
  • Italian seasonings
  • ricotta cheese
  • sour cream
  • salt and black pepper
  • Parmesan cheese
  • Mozzarella cheese

To make the baked ziti preheat the oven to 375 degrees.   Cook the ziti pasta noodles according to the package direction.   Drain.

Meanwhile, place the ground beef in a skillet over medium heat and cook for 5-7 minutes, mixing to break apart the beef, or until it has browned.   Add in the garlic cloves and cook for 1 minutes. 

A skillet of ground beef. 

Stir in the marinara sauce, Italian seasonings, ricotta cheese, sour cream, salt, and pepper.   Mix well to combine and heat for 2-3 minutes.  Remove from heat and stir in half of the Parmesan cheese.

Combine the ziti and 3/4 of the meat sauce in a large bowl.   Mix well.   Place half of the noodles and sauce into the prepared pan.  Sprinkle with 1 cup of cheese.  Place the remaining noodle and sauce on top.   Pour the remaining meat sauce on top of the pasta in the dish.   Sprinkle the top with remaining Parmesan and mozzarella cheeses.

Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the cheese has melted and the pasta is bubbling.   If desired broil the top of the pasta for one minute to brown the cheese.   Remove from oven.

 A baking dish of ziti topped with melted cheese.

This baked ziti is really good.   It’s not over cooked so it doesn’t dry out.  The meat sauce adds a lot of flavor due to the creaminess and the spices that were added to it. 

I like to serve garlic bread or rolls with our baked ziti.  Brown Butter Garlic Knots are super easy to make and one of our favorite things to serve with pasta. If you have the time then Garlic Bubble Bread is another favorite with Italian food.

I like that I can make the ziti and serve it for several days.  I’ve also taken it to new parents when they’ve had their baby or when people have a loss in their life because it’s easy to make but it feeds a crowd. 

I usually make the sauce and the pasta and combine everything into a foil pan but I do not bake it because it can become dry.  Then I place plastic wrap on top of the dish and then a piece of foil before delivering it.

Pin Image:   Title, A plate of ziti topped with cheese and a slice of bread on the side.

How do I reheat the pasta?

Place remaining baked ziti in a baking dish. Spread a cup of marinara sauce over top and sprinkle with a little mozzarella cheese. Bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes or until hot. This dish can also be reheated in a microwave safe dish for 2 minutes in the microwave (make sure you cover the top to prevent splattering).

If you’ve tried my Easy Baked Ziti or any other recipe on Hezzi-D’s Recipe Box please take a minute to rate the recipe and leave a comment letting me know how you liked it. I love hearing from you! You can FOLLOW ME on:

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A plate of Baked Ziti with a slice of bread.

Easy Baked Ziti

Make a delicious Baked Ziti in a creamy marinara meat sauce.
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Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
Servings: 10 servings
Author: Hezzi-D

Ingredients

  • 1 lb. ziti pasta
  • 1 lb. ground beef
  • 3 garlic cloves minced
  • 2 20 oz jars marinara sauce
  • 1 Tablespoon Italian seasonings
  • ¾ cup ricotta cheese
  • ¼ cup sour cream
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • ½ cup Parmesan cheese divided
  • 2 cups mozzarella cheese

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 9 x 13 pan with nonstick cooking spray.
  • Cook the ziti according to package directions. Drain and put in a large bowl.
  • Meanwhile, place the ground beef in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook, breaking the meat apart, for 5-7 minutes or until it has browned. Add in the garlic cloves and saute for an additional minute. Drain off the far.
  • Pour the jars of marinara sauce into the pan along with the meat and mix well. Add in the Italian seasonings, ricotta cheese, sour cream, salt, and pepper. Heat for 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and mix in half of the Parmesan cheese.
  • Combine the ziti and 3/4 of the meat sauce in a large bowl. Stir well.
  • Spread half of the ziti into the prepared pan. Top with 1 cup of mozzarella cheese. Spread remaining ziti on top of the cheese. Pour remaining sauce over top of ziti.
  • Top with remaining mozzarella cheese and Parmesan cheese.
  • Bake in the oven for 25 minutes or until the cheese has melted and the sauce is bubbling.
  • If desired, turn the oven to broil and broil the ziti 6 inches from the heat source for 1-2 minutes, keeping a close eye on it so that it gets brown and bubbly but does not burn.

Notes

A Hezzi-D Original Recipe
A plate of ziti topped with cheese and a slice of bread on the side.

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