This Baked Ziti is a cozy pasta casserole that’s hearty, saucy, and wonderfully cheesy. Pasta is layered with savory Italian sausage, rich tomato sauce, and a creamy ricotta mixture for an easy dinner that has all the comfort of lasagna without all the work.
It’s a family favorite for busy weeknights, Sunday dinners, or anytime you need a comforting meal that feeds a crowd.
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Holly’s Recipe Highlights: Baked Ziti
Baked Ziti is a classic pasta dish that’s easy to put together and is always a hit. I love this recipe so much that it was one of the few recipes from the site that made it into my cookbook, Everyday Comfort.
Why Make It: This baked ziti feeds a crowd, can be assembled ahead of time, and bakes into rich, sturdy layers that hold together beautifully when served.
Time-Saving Tip: Save time by using pre-shredded mozzarella, jarred marinara sauce, and pre-chopped onion to cut down on prep work.
Freezing: Assemble ahead and freeze before baking for an easy future dinner.
Serving Suggestions: I like to serve this baked ziti with homemade garlic bread and a crisp green salad or caesar salad.
Total Time: 1 Hour 10 Minutes Serves: 8
Ingredient Notes
- Italian Sausage: Mild sausage is family-friendly, hot sausage adds extra heat, and bulk sausage helps save prep time. If using links, remove the casings before browning.
- Pasta Sauce or Marinara: Choose a sauce you enjoy on its own, since it’s the base of the casserole. Marinara tends to be brighter and more tomato-forward, while tomato basil or garlic sauces add extra depth of flavor.
- Diced Tomatoes: These add texture and help keep the sauce from tasting flat. Petite diced tomatoes blend in more seamlessly, while fire-roasted tomatoes bring a deeper, slightly smoky flavor.
- Italian Seasoning: This enhances the jarred sauce with a blend of herbs. Add a little extra if using ground beef, turkey, or a very simple tomato sauce.
- Ziti: Cook just to al dente so it holds its texture after baking. Penne, rigatoni, mostaccioli, or medium pasta shells also work well as substitutes.
- Ricotta cheese: Whole milk ricotta creates the creamiest, richest layer. If the ricotta seems watery, drain it before mixing, or substitute cottage cheese for a lighter option.
- Mozzarella Cheese: For the best melt and texture, shred mozzarella from a block. Low-moisture mozzarella is ideal to help prevent the casserole from becoming watery.
Variations
Spicy: Add red pepper flakes to the sauce or use hot Italian sausage for extra heat.
Meat Swap: Ground beef or turkey can be used instead of sausage, with added garlic and Italian seasoning for flavor.
Vegetable Add-Ins: Spinach, mushrooms, bell peppers, zucchini, or chopped kale all work well. Cook watery vegetables first to prevent the casserole from becoming thin.
Lighter: Use turkey sausage, cottage cheese, and part-skim mozzarella for a lighter version.
Make it Meatless: Omit the sausage and add sautéed mushrooms, spinach, or roasted vegetables for a flavorful vegetarian option.
How to Make Baked Ziti
- Brown the sausage and onion in a skillet. Simmer with pasta sauce, diced tomatoes, water, and Italian seasoning.
- Boil the ziti just until al dente and drain.
- Mix the ricotta, egg, parsley, mozzarella, and Parmesan in a bowl.
- Layer sauce, pasta, ricotta mixture, more pasta, more sauce, and mozzarella.
- Bake (full recipe below).
Save It For Later
- Leftovers: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Reheating: Reheat individual portions in the microwave or cover and warm in the oven until heated through.
- Freezing: Assemble the casserole, cover tightly, and freeze for up to 4 months before baking, or freeze leftovers for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before baking or reheating.
- For Best Results: Remove a refrigerated casserole from the fridge about 30 minutes before baking. If it is cold from the refrigerator, it may need extra baking time.
More Cozy Pasta Bakes
Did you enjoy this Baked Ziti Casserole Recipe? Leave a comment and rating below.
Ingredients
- 1 pound Italian sausage
- 1 small yellow onion diced
- 1 (28 ounce) jar pasta sauce or marinara sauce
- 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes with juices
- ½ cup water
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 16 ounces ziti
- 15 ounces ricotta cheese
- 1 large egg
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese divided
- ¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
- thinly sliced fresh basil leaves or chopped fresh parsley for garnish, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease a 9×13-inch baking pan.
- In a large skillet, over medium-high heat, brown the sausage and onion, breaking it up with a spoon. Drain any fat.
- Add the pasta sauce, tomatoes, water, and Italian seasoning. Simmer uncovered for 12 minutes or until thickened, stirring occasionally. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Meanwhile, boil ziti in a large pot of salted water until al dente. Drain well.
- In a small bowl, mix ricotta, egg, parsley, 1 cup mozzarella cheese, and Parmesan cheese.
- Add 1 cup of sauce to the bottom of the prepared baking pan. Layer half of the ziti, top with all of the ricotta mixture, and half of the sauce.
- Add remaining ziti, remaining sauce, and top with remaining mozzarella cheese.
- Bake uncovered for 25-30 minutes or until golden and bubbly.
Video
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Casserole, Dinner, Entree, Main Course, Pasta
Cuisine Italian© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Delicious! The family loved it!
I made this for a potluck dinner the other night with Gluten free noodles (Banza) and it was a hit with everyone! I’m not huge on the fennel flavor in sausage, so I halved the portion for the recipe and subbed in some lean ground beef. It’s like lasagna! We have tons of leftovers but my gluten free sister is happily gobbling up the closest she’s had to “homemade lasagna” in a while :)
I want to try making this in a crock pot! Do I need to modify it at all?
I haven’t tried it so I can’t say for sure Joy. I think it would work, and you can use this Crock Pot sausage pasta recipe for guidance on times. If you try it I would love to hear how it turns out!
I ended up using a very similar recipe to yours (without the egg) for crockpot ziti and it turned out amazing!!! I cooked the noodles al dente and browned the meat then combined all the ingredients in the crock pot on high for about an hour or two. Definitely a keeper!
This recipe made a ton of food, my family devoured it. I made it with 1 lb of beef but, I will make this again with hot italian sausage, petite diced green pepper and onion. My husband had FOUR helpings. I couldn’t believe how quickly it disappeared. This was delicious, creamy, hearty and very easy. My family likes alot of sauce so I will add more next time. This is honestly a “restaurant-yummy” dish you can make, save money and stay home! If you’re considering making this, do it, you will be very pleased.
The best baked ziti I ever had !
Just pulled it from the oven. Couldn’t wait to taste it. Awesome is an understatement. Even the hubby said, “this is really good”. Served it with some Texas Toast.
Just pulled it from the oven. Could wait to taste it. Awesome is an understatement. Even the hubby said, “this is really good”. Served it with some Texas Toast.
So happy to hear that, Leesa!
Made your baked ziti, and it was delicious! Loved the perfect balance of flavors, and so easy to make!
Thanks for your great recipes, always superb!
Thank you so much Linda!
Was delicious. Made a few modifications as far as using ground beef since that’s what I had in the freezer and added more sauce and some more seasonings to the ground beef while cooking it. Also, I’ve always covered my baked ziti or lasagna with foil to prevent the cheese on top from drying out and from burning then take the foil off like the last 5-10 minutes. However, I was following these directions more and it didn’t say to cover. I should have because the cheese completely burnt. My kids would not eat it.
Thanks for trying it, Jessica!
I am using your recipe with a different assembly method and using ground beef instead of sausage. I read a lot of the comments, keeping in mind that it probably needs more sauce. I am using Rao’s marinara and I got some fresh Basil to top it after it comes out of the oven. I had baked ziti at a wedding once and I fell in love with it. I am hopeful that this will be just as good, if not better than the first time. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
I can’t wait to hear what you think of it, Donna!
I made this tonight for dinner it was just awesome. My son who is so picky is coming for seconds later. Thank you Holly for such a great recipe. I even like it better than lasagna it’s a real keeper!
So happy you enjoyed it, Josey!
The flavor was good but not saucy enough for me. Next time I will put in less pasta. Thank you for the recipe!
So glad you enjoyed it, Gloria!
After preparing the meat mixture there is no instruction when to layer it in so I layered Zita then meat both times
Hi Dana, you will find the instructions on how to layer baked ziti in step 6 and 7. Start by adding a thin layer (about 1 cup) of sauce to the bottom of a greased 9×13 pan. Layer half of the ziti, top with all of the ricotta mixture, and half of the sauce. Then add the remaining ziti, then the remaining sauce, and top with remaining mozzarella cheese. I hope that helps!
I made this with gluten free penne because I couldn’t find gf penne – it was delicious and a big hit at the church supper I took it to. I’m making it again tonight for a break from the holiday food.
It came out perfect
I used a pound of penne (our store doesn’t carry ziti) and next time I’ll half it. It was delicious but I would rather it be more “saucy”, mine didn’t look like yours, too much pasta. I used half Italian sausage and 1/2 ground beef.
Husband declared the recipe a keeper.
So happy you enjoyed it, Virginia!
this is a great and simple recipe! Chef, the instructions indicate to add all cheese, including ricotta together with egg, but instructions also indicate to apply all ricotta in one layer and tip with cheese. For less experience cooks would you kindly update for clarity?
thanks for a great recipe!
Hi Nikkie, instructions say to add ricotta with egg, 1 cup of Mozzarella, and Parmesan. Then at the end you add remaining Mozzarella on top. Hope that helps!
I made this tonight and it was delicious. Just the right balance of flavors, sauce, cheese , pasta and meat. I’ll freeze half for Christmas Eve dinner add a salad and garlic bread and voila. I would post a pic of it but can’t figure out how to do that. Recipes on this site are really good and many times a lot healthier versions of the same out there. I appreciate that. I used ground turkey and added my own sausage spices to the meat. I used an upscale jarred marinara. Thanks for a great dish.
So glad you enjoyed it, Jill!
delicious! my family loves it ❤️
Hi!
Question: -for a group of 10 people:Can I double and put it all in a deep dish disposable foil pan? Do I cook longer? So happy I found this recipe!!:)
This should work just fine, foil pans do not conduct heat the same way so it will need extra cooking time. I do recommend setting the foil pan on a baking sheet if possible.