If you like pasta you will love this Skillet Baked Ziti! Think of tender noodles smothered in a creamy red sauce with fresh basil, garlic, and three cheeses. Amazing! So simple yet flavorful. And another great aspect of this dish? You only use one pan which means less dishes to wash. Woot woot! If you have an oven proof skillet you can just pop it in there at the end to brown the cheese a little. Or, you can take the lazy way out like me and just cover the pan and wait a minute or two for the cheese to melt. Technically it wouldn't be skillet "baked" ziti, but either way, it is sure to please!
Skillet Baked Ziti
6 garlic cloves, minced
4 teaspoons olive oil
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
salt and pepper
1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
3 cups water
12 ounces ziti pasta (3¾ cups)
4 ounces (1/2 cup) whole-milk ricotta
½ cup heavy cream
½ cup Parmesan cheese, grated
¼ cup chopped fresh basil
1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
Instructions:
Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 475 degrees.
Combine 1 tablespoon oil, garlic, pepper flakes, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in 12-inch ovensafe nonstick skillet and saute over medium-high heat until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Add crushed tomatoes, water, ziti and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
Cover and cook, stirring often and adjusting heat as needed to maintain vigorous simmer, until ziti is almost tender, 15-18 minutes. Make sure you don't cook it too much. It will continue to cook in the oven. If you are opting to make this on the stove only, go ahead and cook it all the way.
Meanwhile, combine ricotta, remaining 1 teaspoon oil, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper in a bowl. Set aside.
Stir in cream, Parmesan, and basil into the skillet and season with salt and pepper to taste.
At this point if your skillet is not ovensafe, transfer the pasta mixture into a shallow 2-quart casserole dish before sprinkling with the ricotta and cheese and baking. If you're really against turning on the oven you could cover the skillet with a lid and melt the cheese that way but it won't get browned and toasty.
Add dollops of the ricotta mixture with a spoon and sprinkle mozzarella evenly over ziti.
Transfer skillet to oven and bake until cheese has melted and browned, about 10 minutes. Let cool slightly and sprinkle with remaining tablespoon of basil. Serve.
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