Easy Cheesy Baked Ziti recipe is the quick and simple 30 minutes dinner idea made in one skillet. Creamy pasta with blush sauce topped with melted cheese is a perfect comfort meal.
If you have a busy week and don’t want to spend hours making dinner, I have a super easy 30 minutes meal for you! Everything is done in one pan!
This is one skillet meatless baked ziti pasta, made with blush sauce and topped with lots of cheese. A perfect comfort meal for lazy weeknights!
Also, if you like One Skillet meals, check out my Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry, Cheesy Broccoli Chicken and Rice Casserole and One Pot Chicken and Rice.
Baked Ziti Ingredients
This is a very simple ingredients list:
- Crushed tomatoes
- Ziti pasta
- Heavy cream
- Parmesan cheese
- Mozzarella cheese
How to make Easy Cheesy Baked Ziti
You will need a large and deep pan or a skillet that is oven safe.
NOTE: If you don’t have an oven safe skillet, you just will need to transfer the pasta to a baking pan before putting it in the oven. This way you’ll end up having Baked Ziti Casserole.
Preheat you pan on a medium/high heat and add crushed tomatoes. Give it a stir and bring to a boil. Then reduce the heat to medium and let it simmer for about 5 minutes.
Then, add water, pasta, and season with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Stir, cover with the lid, and let it cook for about 15-20 minutes.
NOTE: It is very important to stir the pasta every few minutes, so it won’t stick together or to the bottom of the pan.
Preheat the oven to 450°F.
When pasta is cooked, turn off the stove. Add heavy cream and grated parmesan cheese and stir.
Then evenly sprinkle grated mozzarella cheese over the pasta. I like to buy a pizza blend, which has a mix of mozzarella, provolone and asiago cheeses. It will make you pasta taste like pizza!
Bake the ziti for 10 minutes at 450°F until the cheese is melted and browned.
Did you make this recipe?!? I’d love to know how it turned out! leave a comment and a rating below👇 thank you!
Gluten-Free Baked Ziti
Ingredients
- 1 can crushed tomatoes 28 oz
- 3 cups water
- 16 ounces ziti
- Salt pepper to taste
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1 cup parmesan cheese grated
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese shredded
Instructions
- Preheat a large skillet on a medium/high heat and add crushed tomatoes. Bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Add water, ziti, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes and mix. Cover with a lid and cook for about 15-20 minutes, stirring every few minutes, so pasta won’t stick together.
- Preheat the oven to 450°F.
- When the pasta is cooked, turn off the stove, add heavy cream and grated parmesan and mix. Add more salt if needed. Sprinkle grated mozzarella cheese over the pasta.
- Bake at 450°F for about 10 minutes, until the cheese is melted and browned.
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My mouth was watering as soon as I saw the first photo! I love pasta and this recipe looks so delicious!
Wow this pasta looks delicious and so creamy! Just the weeknight meal I was looking for!
I’ve never thought about making baked ziti in a cast iron skillet — what a great idea. I bet the top and bottom get so nice and crispy!
I’m always ready for pasta but a one-pan pasta dish that’s easy for weeknights, yes, please!
This looks so amazing and I can’t wait to make it! My hubby will be the happiest ever!
No doubt my husbands favorite dinner out there. He’s gonna be so happy when I make this!
I always loved baked ziti, but it seemed so much fuss! This is something you can reasonably do at home on a weeknight. Cool!
That slightly crunchy, cheesy top layer is what I LIVE for! Will you judge me if I just eat it straight out of the pan with a slotted spoon?
Wow that pasta certainly looks comforting, amazing how you prepared this in one pan. That gratinated cheese on top is making me so hungry!
This is the ultimate comfort food, no doubt about it, but I love how quickly this version comes together! Perfect for busy nights!
One pan meals are always stress free for me.I loved your pasta recipe and specially its great for dinner.
This looks so delicious, and I love that it’s a one-pan kind of dish. I’ll definitely be making this on one of our busy weeknights!
If you can cook it in one pan…especially cast iron, count me in. You can never go wrong with a pasta dish any night of the week. Always a family pleaser. Great for stress-free entertaining too.
Love doing pasta bakes, especially this time of year as the weather cools. This one looks so good! This, some crusty bread and vino and I’m set 🙂
Veronika! I saw this on Instagram and had to immediately check it out. This will be on my menu this week. The baked ziti looks fabulous and how great to be able to make it quick in one pan. Perfect for my vegetarian son, too! Great pictures, girl. ❤️
Hi Sally! I am so happy you liked the recipe! Cannot wait to hear feedback from your son;)