Who doesn't love a good pasta recipe, especially one that's as classic as a baked ziti? This satisfying, timeless and easy baked ziti recipe is made with the simplest ingredients, no frills, and can be prepped ahead of time and heated before serving. I don't think it gets any better than that.
Pasta is perfect for any season, any time of day, and day of the week!
This pasta dish pairs perfectly with a cocktail like my citrus spritz or a dessert like my kitchen sink skillet cookie, or simply as a meal prep! No matter how you serve or pair this, I can guarantee utter satisfaction!
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What are the ingredients for this baked pasta recipe?
- Pasta - I like using a rigatoni, ziti, or penne. Feel free to swap for gluten free if you need
- Ricotta Cheese - whole milk ricotta is the way to go!
- Marinara Sauce - I prefer Rao's, Primal Kitchen, or a simple tomato sauce from Cento, Delallo, or Tuttorosso
- Mozzarella - of course we need mozzarella here, it's the most universally used cheese in baked ziti aside from ricotta. I like to use whole milk mozzarella when it comes to baked pasta.
- Dried Basil + Dried Oregano - while these herbs are not necessary, I find it gives added flavor to the overall dish.
See the recipe card below for more details and specific quantities.
How do I make this baked ziti?
Start by preheating the oven to 350º and taking out an oven-safe baking dish. Bring a large stock pot of water to boil. Once the water boils, add salt and stir in your pasta of choice. Cook the pasta 2 minutes less than the directions suggests, drain and set aside.
Take an oven-safe baking dish and pour a few drops of marinara at the bottom. Pour in the pasta and mix the pasta in with the marinara. Add more marinara, spices, salt, pepper, and a few dollops of the ricotta cheese. Stir with a wooden spoon, making sure to coat all of the pasta. Pour in a little more sauce and ricotta as desired.
Top the pasta with a layer of mozzarella cheese and bake for 20 minutes. Once the pasta is finished baking, turn the oven to broil and broil for 2-3 minutes, or until the cheese is golden brown and the pasta is slightly crispy on the sides.
HINT: Broil, or bake on top rack to get that cheese nice and browned, crispy, and bubbly.
Pasta Swaps and Substitutions
I would be remiss if I didn't offer you some substitution and swap options for this recipe, so that you can fully enjoy it, regardless of any dietary needs.
- Pasta - instead of using durum or regular flour penne, you can easily use gluten free penne, rigatoni, or ziti.
- Cheese - swap the regular mozzarella for dairy-free.
- Ricotta - you can find dairy-free versions of ricotta cheese in some stores.
Ways to vary this pasta recipe
One of the benefits of making a pasta recipe is that there are a bunch of ways to vary how you serve and make this dish. Here's a few ideas:
- Spicy - add chili pepper flakes to the pasta as you mix in the ricotta and marinara.
- Veggies - add some spinach, broccoli, or peas if you want to make this a veggie-friendly recipe.
- Meat - you can add in some ground beef or ground turkey to this dish for some added protein.
How do I store this recipe? Can I freeze it?
To Store: Add any remaining baked pasta to an airtight container and place in the fridge for up to 3-4 days. You could also store the entire dish in the casserole dish you baked it in, and reheat when you want to make more of it.
To Freeze: Wrap the baked ziti in plastic wrap in the casserole dish it baked in and freeze. Thaw in the fridge and bake at 350º until the cheese gets melty and bubbly.
PRO TIP:
Baked pasta dishes tend to dry out if it's not well sauced. Make sure to use enough marinara and ricotta cheese when mixing so that the pasta is kept moist.
Hungry for More?
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Easy Baked Ziti Recipe
Equipment
- 1 large pot
- 1 strainer
- 1 oven safe baking dish
- 1 wooden spoon
Ingredients
- 1 pint ricotta cheese
- 1 pkg short pasta
- 24 oz jar marinara sauce
- 2 cups mozzarella shredded
- 2 tablespoon dried oregano
- 2 tablespoon dried basil
- salt
- pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350º.
- Bring a large stock pot of water to boil. Once the water boils, add salt and stir in your pasta of choice.
- Cook the pasta 2 minutes less than the directions suggests, drain and set aside.
- Take an oven-safe baking dish and pour a few drops of marinara at the bottom. Pour in the pasta and mix the pasta in with the marinara.
- Add more marinara, spices, salt, pepper, and a few dollops of the ricotta cheese. Stir with a wooden spoon, making sure to coat all of the pasta.
- Pour in a little more sauce and ricotta as desired. Top the pasta with a layer of mozzarella cheese and bake for 20 minutes.
- Once the pasta is finished baking, turn the oven to broil and broil for 2-3 minutes, or until the cheese is golden brown and the pasta is slightly crispy on the sides.
Melanie
This recipe was a huge hit with my family this past weekend. We were home bcuz of the rain and so I figured I could make this instead of going out! We ate it all, there's no leftovers. We'll have to make again!
Jeremy
Made this for my wife for her birthday tonight and this will now be my go to baked ziti from now on. THANK YOU!!!
Lisette
You will never believe that I’ve never made a baked ziti before your recipe. I absolutely loved it and can’t wait to make again with ground beef. I look at other recipe of your and they look good.
Rebecca W.
This is just so delicious I can’t say it enough. We love making this recipe for dinner on Fridays as it’s easy and satisfies my hungry kiddos.
Ashley C.
OK so you'd think that baked ziti would be an easy recipe to make but I don't know anything about the kitchen so when I saw your recipe it seemed super easy and i tried it. It was amazing! I have leftovers for lunch for Monday for me and my roommate now. Thanks!
Alli
Made this tonight using gluten free pasta and it was delicious!! The whole family loved it … and we were already talking about making this part of our regular rotation as we were enjoying it! Really delicious with minimal effort - just the kind of meals we need more of in our life.
Brent L.
This has to be the best baked ziti recipe I’ve ever made. I’m not exaggerating either. I made a few others and they were so dry. Not this one. The pasta was flavorful, and I like the add of the spices.
Kaitlin
I loved making this for my family last night!! It was such an easy recipe to put together from start to finish, and what I love most is that there's no weird or one-off ingredients needed. I had everything this recipe called for, and my fam loved it!