As I wrap up my Italian American pasta series, Pasta Wednesdays with Appetito magazine, I feel like a pasta al forno dish definitely needs to make the cut. And it doesn’t get more classic Italian American than baked ziti.
I’m sure we’ve all had our share of bad versions of this sitting at parties. I can still smell the Sterno burning underneath an aluminum tray of mushy, dry, tasteless baked ziti.
As a child, I remember always hoping this dish would be as delicious as I wanted it to be—the version I had imagined in my mind. But somehow, it never quite lived up to that. Unless you were invited into the home of someone who was a good cook, and then you could get the version you’d been hoping for.
I always loved my mom’s version. She liked to use rigatoni instead of ziti, and although I’m not particularly opposed to ziti for this dish, I am in favor of texture. I think rigatoni gives you a better bite, especially with those crispy edges.
But the real difference was what she did with the ricotta. She always added dollops throughout the baked pasta instead of mixing the ricotta into the sauce. That created different layers of flavor and texture running through the dish, which is what I loved so much about it. You’d get a bite of a crispy edge, then a saucy bite, and then a creamy bite from the ricotta. The mixture of different cheeses balanced everything throughout.
Today, I’m using a small rigatoni from Rao’s, something of a cross between ziti and a larger rigatoni, which I think works really well for this dish. I use both low-moisture and fresh mozzarella, along with grated Parmigiano and Pecorino, and keep those generous dollops of whole-milk ricotta throughout, just as my mom did.
The marinara is simple: smashed garlic, a quarter of a yellow onion, fresh basil, and San Marzano tomatoes that I lightly pulse in the blender. I simmer it for only about 10 minutes, because it will continue cooking in the oven.
The pasta gets cooked only halfway before it goes into the baking dish, and I make sure it’s nice and saucy because it still has to finish cooking in that sauce. Then come the layers of cheese and ricotta, a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, and about 30 to 35 minutes in a hot oven.
You want the top nicely golden, with lots of crispy bits, while underneath you still have that saucy pasta and those creamy bites of ricotta. I finish with fresh basil over the top to freshen everything up.
That’s the version I always wanted it to be.
Baked Ziti
4
servings20
minutes40
minutesIngredients
- For the Marinara
3 tablespoons 3 extra virgin olive oil
3 3 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
1/4 1/4 medium yellow onion, left intact
6-8 6-8 fresh basil leaves
2 28-ounce 2 cans San Marzano whole peeled tomatoes, with their juices
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- For the Pasta and Assembly
1 pound 1 small rigatoni or ziti
Sea salt, for the pasta water
1 tablespoon 1 unsalted butter, softened, for greasing the baking dish
16 ounces 16 shredded low-moisture mozzarella, divided
1/2 cup 1/2 torn fresh mozzarella, divided
1/2 cup 1/2 freshly grated Parmigiano, divided
1/2 cup 1/2 freshly grated Pecorino, divided
24 ounces 24 whole-milk ricotta, divided (about three-quarters of a 32-ounce container)
extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling
fresh basil leaves, for finishing
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F with a rack in the center.
- Butter the bottom and sides of a baking dish large enough to hold two generous layers of pasta, sauce, and cheese.
- Place the San Marzano tomatoes and their juices in a blender (working in batches if necessary).
- Pulse just until the tomatoes are broken down, keeping a little texture rather than blending them completely smooth. Set aside.
- Heat the extra virgin olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-low heat.
- Add the smashed garlic, onion quarter, and basil leaves.
- Sauté gently for about 4–5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until fragrant and the garlic is lightly golden (take care not to burn the garlic or basil).
- Add the tomatoes and season with sea salt and black pepper.
- Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally (the sauce should remain loose and saucy, since the pasta will finish cooking in it in the oven).
- Taste and adjust the seasoning.
- Remove the onion before assembling (you can remove the garlic as well preferred).
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and season generously with sea salt.
- Add the small rigatoni or ziti and cook for approximately half the cooking time listed on the package (the pasta should still be quite firm in the center).
- Drain well without rinsing.
- Add half the drained pasta to the buttered baking dish.
- Spoon over several generous ladles of marinara and gently toss until well coated (you want it nice and saucy, with a little sauce settling around the pasta, because it still has to finish cooking).
- Scatter over half the low-moisture mozzarella and half the torn fresh mozzarella.
- Sprinkle with ¼ cup each of the Parmigiano and Pecorino.
- Gently toss to distribute the cheeses without overmixing.
- Using half the ricotta, add about six generous spoonfuls across the first layer (keep them as distinct dollops rather than stirring them into the sauce; this is what gives you those creamy bites throughout the finished dish).
- Add the remaining partially cooked pasta to the sauce left in the saucepan and gently stir until thoroughly coated.
- Spoon the pasta and all the remaining sauce over the first layer, spreading it evenly without pressing down or disturbing the dollops of ricotta underneath.
- Scatter over the remaining low-moisture mozzarella and torn fresh mozzarella.
- Gently work them into the upper layer with a few light turns of a spoon.
- Dollop the remaining ricotta across the top in about six generous spoonfuls.
- Finish with the remaining ¼ cup each of Parmigiano and Pecorino, then drizzle with extra virgin olive oil.
- Bake uncovered for 30–35 minutes, until the sauce is bubbling, the pasta is cooked through, and the top is nicely golden with lots of crispy bits (if the top is browning too quickly before the pasta is ready, loosely cover the dish with foil for the remaining baking time).
- Let the baked ziti rest for about 10 minutes before serving so the layers have a chance to settle.
- Scatter fresh basil over the top to freshen everything up, then spoon into portions, getting some of those crispy edges, saucy pasta, and creamy ricotta in each serving.
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