Tender ziti pasta dressed in a flavorful savory meat sauce and creamy béchamel. This is my take on a comfort classic. This cheesy baked ziti will soon to become your favorite way to make baked ziti.
Baked Ziti
Tender ziti pasta dressed in a flavorful savory meat sauce and creamy béchamel. This is my take on a comfort classic. Soon to become your favorite way to make baked ziti.
Servings: 8 People
Ingredients
- 1 lb ziti pasta dried
- 2 cups mozzarella cheese shredded
Meat Sauce
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1/2 lb Italian sausage
- 28 oz can of whole or crushed tomatoes
- 1 cup onion chopped
- 1 cup tomato chopped
- 1 cup water
- 3 cloves of garlic chopped
- 1 tsp oregano dried
- 1 tsp basil dried
- 1 tsp parsley dried
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
Béchamel
- 2 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp flour
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
Instructions
Meat Sauce
- In a pan over medium heat add the ground beef and sausage. Season with salt, pepper and cook until browned.
- Next add in chopped onion and garlic.
- Allow to cook until the onion are translucent. Then add in chopped tomatoes and sauté for 3-4 minutes.
- Once the tomatoes start to release their juices add a can of whole tomatoes and a cup of water.
- Stir and season with salt, pepper, dried oregano, dried parsley, dried basil and red pepper flakes.
- Mix until thoroughly combined, cover and allow to cook for 10-12 minutes on medium low heat.
- Cook the ziti pasta according to the package instructions.
Béchamel
- In a pan over medium low heat add butter and flour.
- Whisk and allow to cook until lightly golden.
- Then, create a steady stream of heavy cream and continue to whisk until everything is incorporated.
- Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg.
- Whisk for another minute or two and once the sauce is thick enough to cover the back of a spoon remove from heat.
Assemble
- Add half the meat sauce to the cooked ziti pasta and mix until incorporated.
- Pour half of this mixture into a baking dish, drizzle on the bechamel, 1 cup of shredded mozzarella and more sauce.
- Then, add the remaining pasta on top followed by the rest of the bechamel, sauce and mozzarella cheese.
- Drizzle with olive oil and a sprinkle of dried parsley.
- Place in a preheated oven at 350F uncovered for 25-30 minutes.
- Allow to cook until the cheese is melted and bubbling around the edges.
- Once cooked, let cool for 10-15 minutes and enjoy!
