Although it looks small, it is a full pound of pasta and will feed 4-6 people as a side dish. Make meatballs or Italian sausage on the side and serve as the main meal. Tricks to keep your Baked Ziti Pie intact:
Do not over sauce. Instead, serve sauce on the side. Sauce will weigh down the cheese (glue).
Use plenty of the glue (cheese).
Don’t eat the pasta while you place it in the cake pan. My husband came along and swiped a fist full. He later had to make an extra trip to the grocery store because you will need every little piece in that one pound box.
VERY carefully remove Baked Ziti Pie from the spring form pan and use pot holders. It can get slippery and it is very hot!
Ingredients
- 1 pound (dry) ziti cooked al dente, drained and cooled
- Dash of salt
- 24 ounces marinara sauce
- 8 ounces mozzarella cheese shredded
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- Parmesan cheese for garnish
- Cooking spray and parchment paper
Instructions
- Cook raw ziti according to package directions with a generous dash of salt. Cook to “al dente” or just slightly underdone because they will cook a little bit more in the oven. Drain well and place in the refrigerator for 1 hour. This gives the pasta time to firm up and for any residual water to evaporate or drain.
- While pasta is chilling, line a 9-inch spring form pan with parchment paper, bottom and sides. Spray all sides generously with cooking spray.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove pasta from the fridge and place cheese in a bowl near by. Prop spring form pan on its side. If you place the springs on the bottom it will stabilize the pan. Start with a few shreds of cheese and then start lining the pan with ziti pieces. After every other layer, sprinkle just a few shreds of cheese to help bind them together. Remember, the cheese is the “glue”. Continue this process until the pan is all the way filled.
- If you have any ziti strands remaining, find spaces where they aren’t fitting so snug. In order for Baked Ziti Pie to work they need to be fitted together quite tight.
- Fill any other holes with cheese. I even went as far as placing a shred of cheese inside the majority of the ziti ropes. Top with 1/2 cup sauce, tap the pan to get sauce into the crevices. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Finish your Baked Ziti Pie with Italian seasoning and black pepper.
- Place Baked Ziti Pie into the oven for 15-20 minutes or until cheese topping is bubbling and browned.
- Carefully remove and allow to sit for 10 minutes.
- This is the tricky part- getting the pie OUT of the spring form pan. The challenge is that you can’t flip it over because the ziti ropes are not uniform lengths. You are forced to very carefully push the pie upwards and slide onto a waiting serving patter. Careful- it is HOT!
- Garnish with finely shredded Parmesan cheese and serve with heated remaining jarred sauce on the side. Enjoy your Baked Ziti Pie!
Thanks done share recipes to : https://www.savoryexperiments.com/baked-ziti-pie-2/