Baked Ziti
Lent 2019
This is a great recipe if your weeks are busy. You can follow steps 1-5 on the weekend or another evening and hold off on baking and broiling until the day of your CG. This recipe also lends itself well to additional ingredients like veggies and spinach or cooked ground meat. Just mix it in before baking and broiling. Layer extra ingredients with the pasta, sauce, and cheese. SERVES 12
Ingredients
1 pound box of ziti or penne pasta (or veggie noodles)
32 ounce jar of red sauce (any type will do: tomato, marinara, vodka sauce, etc.)
~12 ounces shredded mozzarella
1/8 cup grated parmesan
Directions
Put a thin layer of red sauce on the bottom of a 9x11 baking dish (or a combination of other baking dishes, this recipe is flexible).
Following cooking instructions to boil the pasta. Undercook the pasta by a minute or two so that it is very al dente (it will finish cooking when you bake the dish). Stir frequently while cooking, drain thoroughly, and toss with the red sauce when finished.
If using veggie noodles, sauté the veggie noodles and then drain thoroughly squeezing excess water out with a cheesecloth, clean towel, or paper towels. If the veggie noodles are long spirals it helps to cut them into smaller pieces similar in length to the pasta pieces.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Put a layer of pasta in the pan and sprinkle mozzarella cheese over the top. Place a layer of pasta on top of this and then sprinkle more mozzarella cheese. Repeat until the pasta in gone (this will be about 3 layers in a 9x11 pan). You can be particularly generous with the top layer of mozzarella cheese.
Sprinkle grated parmesan over the top.
Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes, uncovering the dish for the last 10-15 minutes.
Broil on high for 2-5 minutes until the cheese is golden brown.
Let sit to cool and set and enjoy!