Meatless Baked Ziti with Ricotta

Pasta in a creamy tomato sauce, topped with melted cheese.

5 from 11 votes

Meatless Baked Ziti with Ricotta

This classic Meatless Baked Ziti casserole is made with marinara sauce and 3 types of cheeses (Ricotta, Parmesan, and Mozzarella). The recipe is so easy to put together and will be perfect to feed a big family.

Prep Time15

Cook Time30

Total Time45

Course: Dinner, Side Dish

Cuisine: Italian

Servings: people

Calories: 454kcal

Author: Veronika Grove

Ingredients

16 ounces dried pasta
32 ounces marinara sauce
2 cups ricotta cheese
½ cup Parmesan cheese grated
2 cups mozzarella cheese grated

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375F.
Bring a pot of water to boil, season generously with salt, and cook the pasta until al dente.
While the pasta is cooking, reheat the marinara sauce over medium heat in a sauce pan or a skillet. When starts to simmer, turn off the heat and add 2 cups ricotta cheese. Stir well and set aside.
When the pasta is cooked, drain the liquid. Mix the pasta with the mixed marinara sauce and ricotta cheese until the pasta is well coated.
Transfer half of the mixture to a large baking dish, sprinkle over half of the shredded mozzarella cheese and Parmesan cheese.
Top it with the rest of the pasta, and top with the rest of the mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.
Bake at 375F for about 20 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbling.

Notes

Cheese. For Parmesan and mozzarella cheese, I always suggest to buy it in a block and grate it yourself at home with a cheese grater. They will have a lot more flavor and less artificial fillers in the cheese.
Pasta. While this recipe is called “Baked Ziti”, you can use any medium size pasta, like rotini, rigatoni, penne, fusilli, etc.
Add a hint of spice. If you like your pasta to be a bit spicy, you can add ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes to the marinara sauce.
How to refrigerate. You can refrigerate the leftovers in an air tight container for up to 5 days.
How to reheat. The best way to reheat it is in the preheated 350F oven for about 20-30 minutes.
How to freeze. Freeze it in an air-tight container for up to 3 months. To defrost, just leave in the fridge overnight and then reheat according to the instructions above.

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