Baked Ziti
Makes 6 to 8 servings
When baked ziti traveled with immigrants from southern Italy to America, it retained its role as a classic wedding meal starter. In Italian, the word “ziti” is short for maccheroni di ziti. Ziti was often referred to as macaroni of the brides because it was traditionally served at weddings. For decades, every large Italian American family gathering, from baptisms to confirmations to weddings and funerals, has been likely to have trays of baked ziti as part of the feast. The various components can be made ahead and then assembled before baking, or the whole dish can be refrigerated for a couple of days before baking, a boon to the cook preparing multiple celebratory dishes for one big meal. These days, baked ziti is almost but not quite as Americanized as lasagna.
INGREDIENTS
- 1 pound (455 g) ziti or other short macaroni
- 4 cups (900 g) Tomato Sauce
- 1¼ cups (285 g) ricotta cheese, drained if not thick
- 1 pound (455 g) mozzarella, grated
- 1 cup (100 g) finely grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
DIRECTIONS
- Preheat the oven to 375°F (175°C).
- Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil. Salt the water generously, add the pasta, and cook for 2 minutes shy of the package instructions; the pasta should be slightly soft with a firm chew to it. Scoop out 1 cup (240 ml) of the pasta water, drain the pasta, and transfer to a large bowl.
- Add 1 cup (225 g) of the tomato sauce and the reserved pasta water to the pasta and toss well.
- Combine the ricotta, 8 ounces (225 g) of the mozzarella, ½ cup (50 g) of the Parmesan, the parsley, egg, salt, and pepper in a bowl and stir together.
- Spread 1 cup (225 g) of the tomato sauce over the bottom of a 13-by-9-inch (33 by 23 cm) baking dish. Spread one-third of the noodles over the sauce and dollop with half of the ricotta mixture. Repeat with another one-third of the noodles and the remaining ricotta. Top with the remaining noodles, sauce, and mozzarella and the remaining ½ cup (50 g) Parmesan.
- Bake the ziti until golden brown on top and bubbling, about 35 minutes. Turn on the oven broiler and broil for 5 minutes, until lightly golden and crispy on top. Remove from the oven and let rest for 15 minutes before serving.
PANTRY
Need help with the ingredients? Check our pantry list:
cook's note
Variation: For a meaty version of this dish, layer in 1 pound (455 g) sausage meat, broken into small chunks and fried until golden brown. Any other tomato sauce you like can be swapped in here.
