baked ziti recipe

No-Boil Baked Ziti with Spinach, Mushrooms and Ricotta - a simple, healthy one-pot meal with only 15 minutes of hands-on time before baking in the oven. Vegan and GF adaptable!

Baked Ziti with Spinach &amp; Mushrooms 

olive oil

onion, chopped

garlic cloves, rough chopped

salt, pepper

chili flakes

Italian seasoning

baby spinach, chopped spinach

chicken stock

dry ziti

ricotta, or herbed tofu ricotta

pecorino

mozzarella cheese

basil

In a large, 12-inch skillet, heat oil over medium heat, add onion, garlic and mushrooms and season generously with salt and pepper,  cooking and stirring until mushrooms release all their liquids and this cooks off, and eventually they get golden brown, about 12 minutes. Taste and make sure these are salted and flavorful.

Add spinach and wilt, then add 2 cups of broth or stock, a jar of marinara sauce and the dry pasta ( about 2 ¾-3 cups dry). Stir, and bring to a simmer. Dot with the dollops of ricotta. Sprinkle with mozzarella and pecorino.  Cover well and place in the oven to bake for 30 minutes.

Uncover and let the cheese get a little golden for a couple of minutes. If there seems to be too much liquid left in the pan, simply simmer uncovered on the stovetop  for 1-2 minutes until it evaporates.

Garnish with fresh herbs and chili flakes.

Entire family Loved this recipe!! I used kale, and added zucchini (since
I have a ton from the garden)
It was amazing. Will definitely make again and again. Super easy, and the clean up also one pan! Can’t beat that. I am excited to try many more of your recipes, they all look amazing. Thank you! ♥️

Absolutely amazing!!! 
I added squash (because I didn’t have enough mushrooms) and crushed tomatoes. Fresh Cilantro for garnish. Appreciate the recipe so much!!!
(FYI, you might want
To correct  the “friends” statement above. It was spelled incorrectly. That would bug me
(But I’m an OCD freak). 😉

Recipe video above. A big, juicy pasta bake!&nbsp;It’s meaty, cheesy, and loaded with flavour from a healthy dose of seasonings. This great American classic may well be the mother of all pasta bakes....

Baked Ziti

/ 10 ounces ziti or penne pasta

garlic (, minced)

onion

beef

/ 24 oz tomato passata ((pureed tomato, Note 3))

water

tsp EACH dried basil, oregano, sugar

ricotta (, optional (Note 4))

mozzarella cheese ((or other melting cheese))

parmesan (, freshly grated (optional))

parsley

fennel seeds ((optional, Note 5))

tbsp paprika ((plain

tsp cayenne pepper

onion powder

tsp EACH salt and black pepper

Cook ziti&nbsp;for the recommended cooking time on the packet MINUS 2 minutes. (Note 5) Drain, then return to pot.&nbsp;

Preheat oven to 180C/350F.

Make Sauce: Heat oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add onion and garlic and cook for 2 minutes or until onion is translucent.

Add meat and cook, breaking it up as you go. When it is just cooked, add Seasonings and cook for 2 minutes.

Add passata, water, basil, oregano and sugar. Bring to simmer, reduce heat to low and cook for 10 minutes. Adjust salt and pepper to taste (remember it gets spread across lots of pasta).

Toss Ziti with Sauce:&nbsp;Pour about 2 cups of sauce into the pot with the ziti. Toss.

Assemble: Spread ziti into baking dish (23x33cm / 9x13&quot;). Dollop with ricotta. Pour over remaining sauce. Top with cheese and parmesan. 

Bake:&nbsp;Cover loosely with foil. Bake 20 minutes. Remove foil, bake further 10 to 15 minutes until cheese is golden.

Serve:&nbsp;Sprinkle with parsley or basil if desired, then serve!

Baked ziti is really tasty and easy to throw together, making it the perfect mid-week meal option. Serve with a light summer salad and enjoy straight from the oven.

Baked Ziti Recipe

onion, finely diced

garlic, crushed

½ tsp chilli flakes

tomato passata tomatoes

salt

black pepper,

ziti

ricotta cheese

Parmesan, grated

mozzarella cheese, roughly chopped

fresh basil leaves, roughly torn

Preheat your oven to 190°C (170°C if you have a fan oven).

Bring a large pot of boiling water to the boil and add a generous pinch of salt. Cook your ziti as per the instructions on the packet. 

Whilst the ziti cooks, heat your olive oil in a large pan or skillet. Cook the onions for about 5-10 mins, until translucent and then add the garlic and the chilli flakes and cook for a few more minutes.

Add the tomato passata or the chopped tomatoes to the pan and bring to a gentle simmer. Season with a little salt and pepper and a few basil leaves.

When the pasta is cooked, remove from the heat and drain off the water. 

Mix the ricotta and half of the Parmesan together to form a creamy filling, add a little pinch of salt to taste. 

Add half of your tomato sauce to the drained pasta and toss to coat thoroughly. Then fold in the ricotta mixture, it doesn’t have to be thoroughly combined as having pockets of ricotta will add to the finished dish. 

Transfer half of your pasta into a large oven-proof dish and sprinkle a layer of mozzarella on top.

Add the rest of your pasta on top of this to form a second layer and pour what’s left of your pasta sauce over this. Top with the remaining mozzarella and sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese and a few torn up basil leaves. 

Bake the ziti in the preheated oven for around 30 minutes, until the top is golden brown and the edges are beginning to bubble.

Allow to cool for a few moments and then serve your ziti bake. Buon appetito!

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Top 3 baked ziti recipe recipes from across the web

The most viewed baked ziti recipe recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

Top Tags

Baked Ziti with Spinach &amp; Mushr...

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The most viewed baked ziti recipe recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine

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