Baked Ziti And Italian Sausage Recipes

ZITI WITH ITALIAN SAUSAGE

Steps:

• In a skillet over medium heat, cook sausage with celery and onion until sausage is evenly browned, about 5 to 10 minutes. Drain excess grease, and set aside.
• In another skillet over medium-low heat, combine tomatoes, tomato sauce, garlic powder, salt, and oregano. Simmer while preparing pasta.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook pasta for 8 to 10 minutes, or until al dente; drain.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). In a 3 quart baking dish, layer ziti, mushrooms, sausage, mozzarella cheese, and sauce. Repeat layers, and top with grated Parmesan.
• Bake for 45 minutes in the preheated oven, or until browned and bubbly.

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 AND ITALIAN SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Cook the ziti according to the package directions. Drain well and set aside.
• Cook the sausage links in oil in a large skillet for 15 minutes or until browned over medium heat; reduce heat if necessary to keep them from burning. Drain well on paper towels. Slice the sausage diagonally and set aside.
• Melt the butter in a heavy saucepan over low heat; add the flour, stirring until smooth. Cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Gradually add the milk; cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thickened and bubbly. Stir in 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, 1 tsp salt, and 1/2 tsp pepper. Add the ziti; stir well, and set aside.
• Combine the remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, ricotta (or cottage cheese), egg, parsley, 1 tsp salt, and 1/8 tsp pepper. Stir well.
• Place half of the macaroni mixture in a lightly greased 13 x 9 x 2 inch baking dish. Top with the ricotta cheese mixture and half of the sausage. Top with the remaining ziti mixture and sausages. Sprinkle with the mozzarella and paprika.
• Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

BAKED ZITI AND SAUSAGE CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Set oven to 350 degrees.
• Grease a 3-quart baking dish.
• Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling water until JUST tender (do not over-cook the pasta as it will cook more in the oven!).
• Place the cooked pasta in a large bowl.
• Heat oil; add in the sausage meat and cook until browned, remove to a plate.
• For the white sauce; melt butter in a medium saucepan; add the onion, garlic and cayenne pepper if using) saute for about 3-4 minutes.
• Add in flour and whisk for 1 minute.
• Slowly add in half and half cream; bring to a simmer, whisking constantly until thickened.
• Remove from heat; add in 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, then season with seasoned salt (or white salt) and pepper to taste.
• Pour the cheese sauce over the cooked pasta in the bowl; mix with a wooden spoon.
• In a medium bowl mix together the cottage cheese with 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, egg and chopped parsley, then season with salt and lots of pepper.
• Spoon HALF of the creamed ziti mixture into the prepared baking dish, then spread the cottage cheese mixture on top, then spoon the remaining pasta mixture on top of the cottage cheese mixture.
• Sprinkle the cooked sausage meat on the top.
• Top with mozzarella cheese, then sprinkle paprika on top.
• Bake uncovered for about 30-35 minutes or until bubbly and hot.
• Let stand about 5 or more minutes before serving.

BAKED ZITI AND SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain; place in a large bowl. In a small skillet, cook sausage over medium heat until no longer pink; drain and cut into 1/2-in. slices., In a large saucepan, melt butter. Stir in the flour, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper until smooth; gradually add milk. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from the heat; stir in 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Pour over pasta; toss to coat., In a small bowl, combine the egg, cottage cheese, parsley, and remaining Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Spoon half of the pasta mixture into a greased 2-1/2-qt. baking dish. Top with cottage cheese mixture. Add sausage to the remaining pasta mixture; spoon over the top. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese and paprika. , Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 30-35 minutes or until a thermometer reads 160°.

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 GROUND BEEF AND ITALIAN SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Heat the oven to 350 F. Lightly grease or spray a 2 1/2- to a 3-quart baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
• Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the ground beef, sausage, and onion. Cook, stirring until the meat is no longer pink and the onion is translucent.
• Add the garlic to the meat mixture and cook, while stirring, for 1 minute longer.
• Add the crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, basil, oregano, and crushed red pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 10 to 12 minutes. Taste and add salt and pepper, as needed.
• In a large bowl, combine the ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, egg, and mozzarella cheese. Stir until well blended.
• While the sauce is simmering, cook the ziti in boiling salted water following the directions on the package. Drain well.
• Add the hot drained pasta to the bowl with the ricotta cheese mixture. Toss lightly to blend.
• Add 2 cups of the meat sauce to the ziti mixture.
• Transfer half of the pasta mixture into the prepared baking dish.
• Spread about half of the remaining meat sauce over the pasta, and then top with the Parmesan cheese and 1 cup of the remaining mozzarella.
• Top with the remaining pasta mixture.
• Finish with the remaining meat sauce, remaining mozzarella cheese, and sprinkle with the chopped parsley.
• Bake for 25 minutes or until hot and bubbly around the edges.
• Serve and enjoy.

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.