Baked Ziti with Ricotta and Italian Sausage

Ingredients

• •1 lb sausage
• •1 lb ziti
• •3 Tbsp butter
• •3 Tbsp olive oil
• •1½ cups shallots
• •¼ tsp kosher salt
• •¼ tsp cracked pepper
• •2 cloves garlic
• •1 Tbsp oregano
• •½ tsp pepper flakes
• •28 oz canned tomatoes
• •15 oz tomato sauce
• •12 oz milk ricotta cheese
• •1 lb milk mozzarella cheese
• •3½ oz parmigiano-reggiano
• •½ cup flat leaf parsley

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Method

From maplewoodroad.com — read the original

1. 1Either cook and drain pasta as usual OR soak your dried pasta in warm salted water for about 30 minutes before draining and adding it to your baking dish.
2. 2To soak pasta, pour 1 lb of ziti into a large bowl and fill it up with warm water until all the pasta is covered with water by an inch or so.
3. 3Add salt (just as you would when boiling pasta in a pot).
4. 4Let sit for about 30 minutes. Stir once or twice so the pasta won’t stick together. Then drain in a colander.
5. 5Sausage
6. 6Remove the sausage meat from the casing and cook in a little bit of oil in a frying pan over medium heat for about 10 minutes. Use a wooden spoon to break the clumps apart.
7. 7Heat 3 tablespoon butter and 3 tablespoon olive oil in a large saucepan until the butter has melted. Adjust the heat. You don’t want the butter to brown, just a light sizzle.
8. 8Add about 1-½ cups diced shallots (or onion) and cook for 3 minutes until they become soft.
9. 9Stir occasionally and season with ¼ teaspoon kosher salt and ¼ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper.
10. 10Add 1 tablespoon minced garlic (about 2 cloves), 1 tablespoon dried oregano, and ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes.
11. 11Cook and stir for one minute.
12. 12Add a 28-oz can of peeled whole plum tomatoes and a 15-oz can of tomato sauce.
13. 13Bring to a boil, give a good stir, reduce heat, and let simmer for 30 minutes. While it’s simmering, occasionally break up the tomatoes using a wooden spoon or tongs.
14. 14After 30 minutes, taste, season to your liking, and taste again.
15. 15Putting it all together
16. 16Preheat the oven to 400°F with the rack placed in the middle.
17. 17If your saucepan is big enough, use it. If not, use a large bowl.
18. 18Combine tomato sauce, pasta, sausage meat, add half the chopped Italian parsley, half the cubed mozzarella, half the finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, and all of the ricotta.
19. 19Stir nice and easy to mix everything very well and pour into 9 x 13" baking dish.
20. 20Cover the baking dish tightly with aluminum foil and bake on the middle rack for 45 minutes.
21. 21Remove, top with the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan, and bake uncovered for another 15 minutes.
22. 22Before serving, sprinkle with the rest of the Italian parsley. Enjoy!