Easy Baked Ziti

Ingredients

• Ziti is our pasta of choice but any medium pasta will work.
• Ricotta cheese makes up the creamy cheese layer
• Mozzarella is the perfect topper
• I always garnish with a pinch of freshly grated parmesan cheese and some fresh herbs like parsley or basil.
• Italian Sausage
• Pasta sauce (or tomato sauce and add a bit of Italian seasoning)
• 14 ounces diced tomatoes undrained
• 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
• 1/2 cup water
• 16 ounces ziti
• 1 egg
• 2 cups mozzarella cheese shredded
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese shredded

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375°F
2. Brown ground sausage and onion breaking up until the sausage is fairly fine. Drain any fat.
3. Add in Italian seasoning, water, tomatoes and pasta sauce. Simmer 10-15 minutes or until thickened.
4. Cook the pasta in a large pot of salted water.
5. In a small bowl, mix ricotta, egg, parsley, 1 cup mozzarella cheese, and parmesan cheese.
6. Add a thin layer (about 1 cup) of sauce to the bottom of a greased 9×13 pan. Layer half of the ziti, top with all of the ricotta mixture, and half of the sauce.
7. Add remaining ziti, remaining sauce, and top with remaining mozzarella cheese.
8. Top with the remaining shredded mozzarella
9. Bake at 375°F for 25-30 minutes until the cheese is melted and bubbly.