This easy baked ziti casserole is loaded with ricotta, mozzarella, sour cream, and cream cheese for a rich and cheesy flavor. Featuring a hearty meat sauce made with Italian sausage and jar sauce, it's a quick and easy 9x13 dish that's great for make-ahead meals. Learn how to create the best ever classic baked ziti recipe that's homemade and family-friendly. Pin this recipe now to save a delicious ziti lasagna-style dinner idea for busy weeknights or special occasions!
Why this is the best easy ricotta baked ziti
Baked ziti is the ultimate comfort food. Rich, cheesy, creamy, saucy, and full of sweet Italian sausage, this thick, baked pasta dish is like heaven on a plate.
Baked ziti is a simple and easy baked pasta recipe. This great weeknight pasta casserole is as easy as dumping a few things together; it doesn't get any easier than that! The recipe is simple with only a few ingredients, so prep is very quick and easy too.
The ingredients for this easy recipe are very common and very inexpensive. You probably have most of the simple ingredients already in your pantry, and the remaining couple are available in every grocery I've ever visited.
This recipe is easy to serve. It doesn't get easier than a dump-and-go casserole, which makes this a perfect weeknight dinner for a busy mom or dad.
This recipe is a family favorite. Kids especially love the creamy, cheesy sauce and tender pasta.
What you'll need to make the best easy baked ziti recipe
Equipment
- Large pot of salted water - This is for cooking the pasta.
- Large skillet - This is for simmering the meat sauce.
- Deep 9x13 pan - This recipe makes quite a bit of food, so you'll need a large pan. If you want to make it in a 9x9 pan or a round casserole dish, you'll need to cut it in half.
- Garlic press - I always use fresh garlic because I think it has the best flavor. A garlic press squeezes the garlic cloves to make a thick paste that is easy to distribute into the rest of the dish.
Ingredients
See the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page for all measurements and nutritional information.
- Ziti noodles or penne pasta - You can use gluten-free, low carb, high protein, or regular old pasta.
- Extra virgin olive oil - This is just to cook the ground Italian sausage.
- Ground Italian sausage - You could also use ground beef, ground turkey, ground pork, or a combination.
- Chopped onion - I like to use sweet Vidalia onions.
- Fresh garlic - There is no substitute for fresh garlic. Jarred garlic and garlic powder don't come close to the same flavor. If you must, you can substitute, but you will notice a difference.
- Italian seasoning - You might think the jarred spaghetti sauce has enough seasoning, but you would be wrong. Don't leave the Italian seasoning out. If you don't have any, mix it up using the recipe below.
- Crushed red pepper flakes - This is a very small amount and will not make your baked ziti spicy. It does however, add flavor that you will miss if you leave it out.
- Spaghetti sauce - Any marinara sauce or pasta sauce will be great, but don't use plain tomato sauce.
- Shredded mozzarella cheese - There are four different kinds of cheese in this recipe, and there is a lot of each one. Just trust the process.
- Ricotta cheese - I recently learned how to make my own ricotta cheese using whole milk, salt, and white vinegar. It tasted way better than any ricotta I've ever gotten from the store, and it only took about an hour. So if you're so inclined, check out a YouTube video on homemade ricotta. You'll be amazed at how tasty it is.
- Sour cream - You can substitute plain Greek yogurt if you prefer.
- Softened cream cheese - This has to be soft. If you've forgotten to soften it, microwave it for 30 seconds at a time until it's soft enough to blend into the other cheeses.
- Grated Parmesan cheese - This is not the powdery stuff in a can; it is the slivered stuff in the refrigerated cheese case. They taste completely different and are not interchangeable.
How to make easy baked ziti with Italian sausage
- Add about a half teaspoon of salt to a large pot of water. Bring the water to a boil, add the pasta, and prepare it according to package directions, removing pasta from the water while it is a little more firm than al dente. Drain and drizzle with olive oil to prevent it from sticking while you prepare the sauce.
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
- While the pasta is cooking, make the meat sauce. Heat a tablespoon or so of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Heat the sausage, crumbling it with a wooden spoon or spatula as it cooks. Add the onion and sauté until it is translucent and soft. Press the garlic into the skillet and add the Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, and 32 oz of spaghetti sauce. Stir and set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the ricotta, softened cream cheese, sour cream, 1 cup of mozzarella, and ½ cup of Parmesan. Taste and season with salt and black pepper as needed. Mix well.
- Mix a couple of spoonfuls of the reserved pasta sauce in with the pasta, then spread half of the pasta in the baking dish. Cover it with half of the meat sauce.
- Drop spoonfuls of the cheese mixture over the pasta, using about half of the ricotta mixture.
- Sprinkle with 1 cup of mozzarella cheese. Repeat the layers (meat sauce, remaining pasta mixture, ricotta mixture, mozzarella), then pour the rest of the reserved sauce over the top.
- Sprinkle with the remaining ½ cup of Parmesan cheese.
- Cover with foil and bake for about 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for 10 additional minutes or until cheese is bubbly and beginning to brown.
Variations & substitutions
You can use plain Greek yogurt in place of the sour cream.
You can use ziti pasta, penne noodles, or really any shape of pasta or noodles that you have on hand.
You can use almost any kind of meat in this easy baked ziti. Ground Italian sausage is my favorite, but if you don't eat pork, go for turkey sausage, ground beef, or even diced chicken.
You can add some vegetables into the pasta dish, including chopped broccoli, spinach, or green beans. I would recommend steaming them before adding them to the casserole as they will not cook in the short time that it is baked.
Cook's tips for the best baked pasta dish
If you don't have Italian seasoning, mix it up in the following ratio and then measure out one tablespoon. You can store the rest in an airtight jar for later use. You won't have a lot left over, maybe a teaspoon and a half or so.
- 1½ teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried marjoram
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
- ½ teaspoon dried sage
I usually serve ricotta baked ziti as a complete meal, but you can also serve it with a small green salad and garlic bread.
You can make vegetarian baked ziti very easily. Just leave out the sausage. There is no need to add anything in to replace it.
Can you make ricotta baked ziti ahead?
Yes. You can make the casserole, wrap it in aluminum foil or plastic wrap, and store it in the refrigerator up to three days before you want to cook it. You may need to add a few minutes to the cook time because you're putting it in the oven cold.
Storage
Fully cool leftovers to room temperature, then transfer to an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to 5 days. You can reheat baked ziti in the microwave.
You can also freeze baked ziti, before or after it's been cooked. If you're freezing the whole casserole before baking, you can tightly wrap the dish in plastic wrap or aluminum foil and store it in the freezer for up to two months.
If you're freezing individual portions, consider Souper Cubes. They are nifty little trays that are already portioned, and you put the food inside and then stick it in the freezer. I think they intend for you to buy a bunch of their trays and store the food inside, but that's not what I do. I bought two of each size and I fill them, freeze the food, and then remove the frozen food from the trays and put it into plastic freezer bags for long term storage. Regardless of how you store it, you can keep frozen baked ziti for about two months.
To serve frozen baked ziti, put it in the fridge overnight to thaw and then heat in the microwave.
Try these other Italian favorites and pasta dishes:
- Chicken Bryan at Home - Copycat Carrabba's Recipe
- Chicken Tetrazzini - Easy 15 Minute Meal
- Ravioli with Alfredo Sauce
- Balsamic Mushroom Chicken
- Chicken Piccata with Zucchini Noodles
- Salmon Piccata
- Chicken Savoy
Recipe
Easy Ricotta Baked Ziti with Italian Sausage
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 pound pasta ziti or penne, we use gluten-free
- olive oil extra virgin
- 1 pound Italian sausage ground
- 1 large onion chopped
- 4 cloves garlic pressed
- 1 tablespoons Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 44 oz spaghetti sauce
- 3 cups mozzarella cheese shredded, divided
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- 1 cup sour cream
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1 cup Parmesan cheese grated, divided
Instructions
- Prepare the pasta according to package directions, removing pasta from the water while it is still firm. Drizzle with olive oil to prevent it from sticking while you prepare the sauce.
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
- While the pasta is cooking, make the meat sauce. Heat a tablespoon or so of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Heat the sausage, crumbling it as it cooks. Add the onion and sauté until it is translucent and soft. Press the garlic into the skillet and add the Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, and 32 oz of spaghetti sauce. Mix well and set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the ricotta, softened cream cheese, sour cream, 1 cup of mozzarella, and ½ cup of Parmesan. Mix well.
- Spread a thin layer of meat sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Mix a couple of spoonfuls of the reserved pasta sauce in with the pasta, then spread half of that saucy pasta in the pan. Drop spoonfuls of the cheese mixture over the pasta, using about half of the ricotta mixture. Sprinkle with 1 cup of mozzarella cheese. Repeat the layers (meat sauce, saucy pasta, ricotta mixture, mozzarella), then pour the rest of the reserved sauce over the top.
- Sprinkle with the remaining ½ cup of Parmesan cheese.
- Cover with foil and bake for about 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for 10 additional minutes or until cheese is bubbly and beginning to brown.
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