Baked Ziti

For my first post this really isn't anything new, gourmet, or even something I would call DELISH! But it was an easy Sunday dinner and Maddie loves it!!! There are some variations you can do with this dish, for example, I used ground beef but you could do sausage or ground turkey. Also, I used fresh herbs which were from my garden. But you can use whatever you have in your kitchen. And it really makes a large amount which is great if your having company over or have a larger family:) Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1lb Ground beef
1 lb Ziti noodles
1 Onion, Chopped
3-4 Garlic Cloves, Minced
1 Tbs of each ( Basil, Rosemary and Oregano)
Pinch of Fennel Seeds
1/2 teaspoon ( I do a little more) Red Pepper Flakes
1 Large Jar of your favorite sauce or make your own
1/2 pound Mozzarella , grated
2 cups of Fat Free Ricotta
1 cup Parmesan Cheese


Bring a large pot of water to a boil add the ziti noodles and about 1 tablespoon of salt. Cook until the pasta is al dente. Drain the noodles. I put the noodles back into the pot with a bit of olive oil so they don't stick together.

Add olive oil to a large saute pan and cook ground beef over medium- high heat. When the meat is browned a bit you can drain and add the chopped onion. Saute till the onion begins to brown then add your spices and garlic to the pan. Saute for about 1 minute. Then add your spaghetti sauce. Bring to Simmer.

Preheat oven to 350.  On the bottom of a 13x9 casserole dish pour a thin layer of your sauce mixture, then dot the surface with half of the ricotta cheese. In the pasta pour in some sauce and stir together. Add pasta on top of ricotta mixture.

Poor the rest of the sauce over the pasta and add the rest of the ricotta cheese. Sprinkle the mozzarella and the Parmesan cheese over the top. You can also add some of the mozzarella before you add the noodles for more cheese.:) Which is always good:)

Bake about 20 minutes or until browned.