I love baked ziti. It’s so easy. Soooo easy. And it can be prepped on the weekend and stuck in the fridge, and then cooked later in the week. It reheats well. It’s just easy and a crowd pleaser.

I use Penzey’s Pasta Sprinkle in almost every one of my pasta sauces. If you’ve never heard of Penzey’s before, I swear by their spices. They are phenomenal, and I think they make all the difference. I slowly switched out my spices from grocery store spices to Penzey’s over several years as I used them up. They are so good!

Here’s my take on the classic:

Print Pin

Cheesy Baked Ziti

A favorite and a classic

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time 35 minutes minutes

Servings 12

Ingredients

• 1 lb dry ziti pasta
• 1 yellow onion chopped
• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 2 jars of spaghetti/marinara sauce
• 2 tsp Penzey's Pasta Sprinkle (this is a combo of basil, thyme, oregano, and garlic)
• 6 oz provolone cheese sliced
• 1 1/2 c sour cream
• 6 oz mozzarella cheese
• 2-3 tbsp parmesan grated

Instructions

• Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add pasta and cook according to instructions – about 8 min. Drain.
• At the same time, in a large skillet, brown onion and ground beef over medium heat. Add spaghetti sauce and Pasta Sprinkle and simmer for 15 min.
• Preheat the oven to 350*. Grease a 9×13 in. baking dish.
• Layer ingredients in dish as follows: 1/2 of cooked ziti, Provolone cheese, sour cream, 1/2 sauce mixture, remaining cooked ziti, mozzarella cheese, remaining sauce mixture. Top with an appropriate amount of parmesan cheese.
• Bake for 30 minutes until cheese melts