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Baked Ziti
One of my good friends had to have knee surgery about a week ago and as you might expect, it can be a long road back to full recovery. The meds are making her loopy and the idea of cooking for herself just isn't happening. And luckily, I just got this year's edition of "The Best of America's Test Kitchen." If you've never heard of it, it's the annual magazine edition of America's Test Kitchen. The show takes traditional recipes and makes them over and over again in order to find the best recipes. For the end user it means recipes that you can depend on to work consistently.
Cooking at home is better for you and it's better for the planet. There's less wasteful takeout containers and you can control your ingredients. But the key to becoming a regular at-home cook, is having a few go-to make ahead meals when times get busy because realistically, we don't always have time to cook. This is the perfect recipe to make a few days before, maybe on the weekend when you have more time. I made one for my friend and another for when my dad comes to visit on Friday.
Also consider my Slow Cooker Kitchari or a Lentil Squash Soup. Both are handy make ahead meals.
INGREDIENTS
| 1 lbs | organic cottage cheese |
| 2 | large eggs, lightly beaten |
| 4 oz. | parmesan reggiano, freshly grated |
| 1 lbs | whole wheat ziti, or similar shaped pasta |
| 2 tbsp | organic olive oil |
| 6 | cloves garlic, chopped |
| 1 28 oz | can organic tomato sauce |
| 1 14.5 oz | can organic diced tomatoes |
| 1 tsp | dried oregano |
| ½ cup | fresh basil, chopped |
| 1 tbsp | fresh oregano, chopped |
| 1 tsp | sugar |
| Salt | |
| Pepper | |
| ¾ tsp | cornstarch |
| 1 cup | heavy cream |
| 8 oz. | soft mozzarella, cubed |
PREPARATION:
Method
- Combine cottage cheese, eggs, and 1 cup parmesan reggiano cheese in a bowl and set aside.
- Cook off pasta in another bowl according to directions, until just before it's al dente.
- Heat up a large skillet to medium high heat and add olive oil and garlic. Cook just until the scent begins to fill the room and then add tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and oregano. Simmer until it thickens a bit, about 10 minutes. Take off the heat and add sugar, basil, fresh oregano, salt, and pepper.
- Combine cornstarch and heavy cream in a small saucepan over medium heat and simmer until it thickens for about 3 minutes. Be careful not to scorch or overcook the cream. Take off the heat and add to cottage cheese mixture.
- Add heavy cream to cottage cheese mixture and combine with a spoon. Add pasta in and combine thoroughly. Add tomato sauce mixture and mozzarella and carefully combine.
- Add into a 13 x 9 inch baking dish and cover with remaining parmesan reggiano cheese. Bake for 30 minutes covered tightly with foil. Remove the foil and bake 30 more minutes. If you're making it ahead, you can wait to bake it off until just before you need it.
Recipe adapted from The Best of America's Test Kitchen.
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