Baked Ziti With Hot Italian Sausage Fresh Mozzarella Recipes

BAKED ZITI WITH SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the ziti according to the package directions for very al dente, about 7 minutes. (It will continue to cook in the oven so you want to undercook it just a bit.) Drain and add the pasta back to the pot. Set aside.
• Preheat the oven to 425°F and set the oven rack in the middle position.
• Heat a large sauté pan (preferably nonstick) over medium-high heat. Crumble the sausage into the pan and cook, breaking apart with a wooden spoon, until lightly browned and just cooked through, 5 to 6 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the cooked sausage to a plate. Drain all but 1 tablespoon of the fat from the pan and set over low heat (if you don't have enough fat in the pan, add a tablespoon of olive oil). Add the garlic and cook, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until soft but not browned, about 1 minute. Add the crushed tomatoes, salt, sugar and red pepper flakes and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes.
• Add the cream, ⅓ cup of the pecorino Romano, cooked sausage, and basil to the pan; stir until evenly combined. Carefully pour the contents of the sauté pan into the large pot with the pasta and gently stir to combine. Spoon half of the mixture into a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Sprinkle with half of the shredded mozzarella and half the remaining pecorino Romano. Spoon the remaining pasta mixture on top and sprinkle with the remaining mozzarella and pecorino Romano. Transfer to the oven and bake, uncovered, until the cheese has melted and browned, 15 to 20 minutes. Sprinkle with more basil and serve.
• Make-Ahead/Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The dish can be assembled, covered, and refrigerated for up to 2 days in advance, or frozen for up to 3 months. (If frozen, defrost in the refrigerator overnight.) Whether refrigerated or frozen and defrosted, bake, covered tightly with aluminum foil, in a 425°F oven for 25 minutes. Then uncover and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes, until the cheese is lightly browned and the pasta is hot throughout.

BAKED ZITI WITH ITALIAN SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Cook sausage links according to package directions; drain, cut into ¼-inch slices.
• In a large bowl, combine sausage slices, pasta, pasta sauce, water, basil, garlic, Parmesan cheese, pepper and mix well.
• Spoon mixture into a greased 9-in. x 13-in. x 2-in. baking dish.
• Arrange garlic bread slices on top of meat mixture.
• Sprinkle evenly with mozzarella cheese.
• In a small bowl, dip tomato slices into olive oil.
• Place one slice of tomato on each piece of bread.
• Bake uncovered, at 400°F for 25-30 minutes or until heated through. Remove from oven and let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
• Garnish with basil leaves. Serve.

BAKED ZITI WITH SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.
• Fill a large pot with lightly salted water and bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Once the water is boiling, stir in the ziti, and return to a boil. Cook the pasta uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the pasta has cooked through, but is still firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Drain well in a colander set in the sink.
• While pasta is cooking, heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the sausage, and cook and stir until brown, about 10 minutes. Drain sausage and set aside.
• Stir together the ricotta, egg, onion, garlic, and oregano in a large bowl until well combined. Stir in the drained pasta, the drained sausage, salt, pepper, and 1/2 jar of the spaghetti sauce; mix well.
• In the prepared baking dish, cover the bottom with 1/3 jar of spaghetti sauce. Layer 1/2 of the pasta mixture, 1/3 jar of spaghetti sauce, and 1/2 of the shredded cheese. Then layer the remaining 1/2 of the pasta, 1/3 of the sauce, and 1/2 of the cheese. Sprinkle with basil. Cover the dish tightly with aluminum foil.
• Bake in the preheated oven until heated through, about 20 minutes. Uncover; return to the oven and bake until cheese is melted, 5 to 10 more minutes.

BAKED ZITI WITH TOMATO, MOZZARELLA AND SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Lightly oil a large, shallow baking dish.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
• In a large skillet, heat about 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat.
• Add the onion and saute until soft, about 5 minutes.
• Add the garlic and crumbled sausage; saute until the sausage begins to brown.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• If the sausage renders a lot of fat, pour most of it off leaving a little to add flavor to the sauce.
• Add the red wine; boil until it is almost gone.
• Add the tomatoes with all of their juices and cook, uncovered, at a lively simmer for about 10 minutes. The sauce will thicken slightly.
• Add the marjoram or oregano and taste for seasoning.
• In a large mixing bowl, mix together ricotta, about half the grated pecorino, the nutmeg, and the parsley. Season with salt and pepper.
• Meanwhile, cook the pasta until al dente.
• Drain well and toss it with the ricotta mixture until well coated.
• Add the sausage and sauce and mix again.
• Add the mozzarella and toss gently.
• Pour everything into the baking dish and sprinkle the remaining Pecorino on top.
• Bake uncovered until lightly browned and bubbling, about 20 minutes.
• Serve right away.

BAKED ZITI WITH SPINACH, SAUSAGE, AND MOZZARELLA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Heat heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add sausage, onion, and garlic, and saute until sausage cooked through, about 10 minutes, breaking up meat with back of spoon. Add tomatoes with juice to pan. Simmer until sauce thickens slightly, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Stir in pesto sauce. Season with salt and pepper.
• Lightly oil 13 x 9 glass baking dish. Combine pasta, spinach, mozzarella, and 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese in large bowl. Stir in hot tomato sauce. Mix gently until spinach is wilted. Transfer mixture to prepared baking dish. Sprinkle remaining 2/3 cup Parmesan cheese over top. Bake until sauce bubbles and cheese melt, about 30 minutes.

THREE-CHEESE BAKED ZITI WITH ITALIAN SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Spray a 4-quart rectangular baking dish with nonstick spray. Combine mozzarella and Italian blend cheeses in a bowl and place in the refrigerator.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add ziti and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender yet firm to the bite, about 11 minutes. Drain.
• At the same time, heat 3 tablespoons oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add sausage and break up into morsels. Sprinkle baking soda onto sausage, then add onion and garlic. Cook and stir, continuing to break up any clumps as it cooks, until browned and crumbly, 5 to 7 minutes. Pour off and discard any grease.
• Add pasta sauce, olives, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, anchovy paste, black pepper, and red pepper flakes. Add up to 3 tablespoons more oil if desired, and continue stirring until mixture comes to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring regularly, until thickened, 5 to 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in ziti.
• Spread 1/2 of the sauced ziti into the prepared baking dish and sprinkle 1/2 of the shredded cheese mixture evenly on top. Spoon or ladle the rest of the ziti evenly on top without disturbing the layers underneath; it's okay to have some ziti partially exposed as they will brown handsomely and deliciously as they bake. Sprinkle remaining shredded cheese mixture on top and sprinkle Parmesan across the surface.
• Bake, uncovered, in the preheated oven until bubbly, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest for 15 minutes before serving.

BAKED ZITI WITH HOT ITALIAN SAUSAGE & FRESH MOZZARELLA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Cook ziti until it is al dente (so that when you bake it in the oven it will cook the rest of the way). Rinse in cold water, drain and pour into a 7"x11" glass baking dish.
• Meanwhile, begin cooking sausage.
• Puree San Marzano tomatoes, crushed red pepper flakes and salt in a blender until smooth.
• When sausage is done, remove from pan and add 1/2 cup wine to reserved drippings from sausage and bring to a simmer scraping any bits from the bottom of the pan and stirring with wine. While wine is simmering, slice sausage at a slight diagonal about 1/2" thick.
• Add pureed sauce and sliced sausage to wine and stir. Bring to a boil and simmer gently for 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile thinly slice and chop the fresh mozarella balls (some people recommend freezing for a 5 minutes or so to help with slicing, but I never do).
• When sauce is done simmering, pour everything over pasta. Sprinkle 1 cup of the fresh mozzarella throughout (fresh makes all the difference!) and sprinkle the rest on top. Top with a few shakes of crushed red pepper.
• Bake for approximately 45 minutes or until you see it getting a little bubbly. You can even cook it longer it you want it to get a little crisp on top, not too crisp as it will get dry.
• Serve with a bottle of wine and some nice Italian music.

MOZZARELLA ZITI WITH SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Cook sausage, onion, and bell pepper in oil over medium heat in a large skillet and drain.
• Add diced tomatoes, stewed tomatoes, and ketchup and mix well.
• Cook ziti according to package directions and drain.
• In a large bowl, combine sausage tomato mixture, and toss with pasta and cheese.
• Spoon into a greased 3 quart baking dish.
• Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.