Garlicky & Cheesy Baked Ziti

We had our first dusting of snow last week, which means it's casserole season. Baked ziti, lasagna and baked macaroni and cheese bring me comfort on cold days. They give me an excuse to heat up the house, and stand in the warm kitchen for most of the evening.  

At the store the other day, I came to the blog to find a ziti recipe, and was surprised to find nothing I had actually tried myself. I had wanted to try out a recipe a while back, but never actually did it. So, I found a new recipe, and adapted it to my preferences. I used a penne pasta with added flax seeds that was absolutely delicious the night I made it, but not as great after a few days. Next time I want to see how it works with a true whole wheat pasta, or one of the new high protein lentil, quinoa or chickpea pasta options that are coming out. 

Baked Ziti with Meat Sauce
Serves 4-6

Ingredients

1 1/3 lb ground turkey, 93%
2 tsp Italian seasoning
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
4 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tsp crushed red pepper
2 cans diced tomatoes
2 Tbsp tomato paste
4-6 cups cooked penne pasta with flax seeds
8 oz fresh mozzarella cheese

1/2 cup parmesan, shredded
1 tsp parsley flakes, optional

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cook the pasta until it is al dente', then drain the pasta. Place the ground turkey into a pan, and place the pan over medium heat. Season the ground turkey with the Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, crushed red pepper, and garlic, then cook the meat until it browns.

Once the meat browns, add in the tomatoes, adding only the liquid from one can and draining the liquid from the second can. Next, add in the tomato paste, and stir the ingredients. Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes. Place the meat sauce in your baking dish, then and in the pasta. Fold the ingredients, then add in the mozzarella cheese. Fold the cheese in with the other ingredients.

Top the ziti off with the parmesan cheese, then sprinkle the parsley flakes on top. Bake the ziti uncovered at 350 degrees, for 40 to 45 minutes, or until browned. Let the ziti sit for 5 to 10 minutes before digging in. Enjoy!

Allergens: wheat, milk

Nutrition (1/6): 505 calories, 19 g fat, 8 g saturated fat, 3 g monounsaturated fat, 91 mg cholesterol, 1100 mg sodium, 341 mg potassium, 47 g carbohydrate, 7 g fiber, 6 g sugar, 36 g protein, 19% vitamin A, 16% vitamin B-12, 26% vitamin C, 32% calcium, 24% iron, 16% niacin, 19% phosphorous, 12% riboflavin, 12% selenium, 21% thiamin, 

Cost (1 recipe): $25.50

Adapted from: https://iheartrecipes.com/baked-ziti-with-meat-sauce/

P.S. If you're hungry, and can't wait for the ziti to bake, the meat sauce was great over some extra pasta with just a sprinkling of Parmesan. I wonder if you could even leave the prepped casserole in the fridge and fresh bake it the next day.

The fact that I couldn't wait to eat may have altered the proportions as well - so just do what looks good to you!