Mama Morelli's Baked Ziti

I think really good food should tell a story, don't you? It doesn't have to be all crazy gourmet-complicated and you don't have to be an Iron Chef to be a champion in the kitchen, especially where cooking for a family with kids is concerned.  When I think back to the concept of "simple is always better," I can't help but refer to the first dish my Mom ever taught me how to cook. I can look back through the years of making Baked Ziti and have flashbacks of everywhere I have ever lived and pretty much everyone I have ever crossed paths with.

This past weekend,  my brother-in-law requested my Baked Ziti for his birthday meal and as easy as it is to sling together, I think he let me off the hook as far as birthday meals go, but really, it's so dang good I was kind of excited to make it.  We had the whole family over and as I was cooking I was temporarily transported back to college. All I needed was a jug of bad pink Gallo to put me back to cooking in bulk for my (eventual) husband and half of his fraternity brothers, but my most vivid memory was how happy I felt when they said they loved this meal!

Years later I would share this meal with friends in Nashville and Colorado, with my sister and I even fixed it for my Mom the-Master a time or two.  My kids call it "Pizza Pasta," and even they asked for seconds this time! SCORE!

I don't make it too often, but it's a total crowd pleaser whenever I do.  It's a great, quick meal to feed a lot of people on an easy budget and it's totally kid-friendly. 

Mama Morelli's Baked Ziti

Ingredients (serves 5-6)

• 1 full box tube pasta like penne, ziti or my personal favorite, rigatoni
• 1 jar and a half of your favorite pasta sauce (or about 4-5 cups homemade)
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• About 1/3 package sliced pepperoni 
• 1/3 cup vegetable broth
• Olive oil and a large pinch of coarse sea salt
• Foil and non-stick cooking spray

Instructions:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees

Cook pasta in salted, oiled water per upper scale of package directions (If the package says cook 10-12 min, go for the 12 - you're going to bake this later and you don't want your pasta to dry out, so in this case if it's a little overcooked, it's all good)

Add a little olive oil to a large, deep baking dish. (I use a deep 9x12" dish - you have to mix a lot in there and you don't want a boil over = gross, smelly mess in your oven.)

Drain pasta and place in baking dish. Coat with the olive oil (it doesn't take much) to keep pasta from sticking together.

Add pasta sauce. Dump in first jar, then add vegetable broth to the jar, replace the lid and shake to get excess sauce from the jar and dump the liquid mixture in with your noodles. Water works too, but veggie broth adds flavor. (KITCHEN HINT: A carton of vegetable broth is a kitchen staple for me since my vegetarian days. Zillions of uses, keeps forever and comes in low/no sodium organic form, which I love.)

Stir and add in some pepperoni (maybe like 10 slices, ish); poke 'em down in the sauce

Add about half your cheese and lightly stir in

Add the rest of your sauce. I like a jar and a half, but this really is a matter of personal preference. More sauce is really better because when you bake it the pasta will lose some of its moisture, so more sauce compensates.  When I'm making this dish in bulk, I usually double this recipe, so two full jars usually does the trick, but again, it depends if you're a "light-on-the-sauce" kind of person/family.

Make sure all your pasta is coated well with the sauce, especially the edges. Don't go too nuts with the stirring, or you'll end up with rogue pasta all over your countertop.

Top with more pepperoni (poking down in there once again) and sprinkle evenly with remaining cheese.

Pull off enough foil to cover your dish and spray underside with non-stick cooking spray so your cheese won't stick during baking.

Cover and bake about 45 minutes at 350 degrees.

(HINT: for a vegetarian option, substitute chopped, fresh veggies like eggplant or zucchini and stewed tomatoes and fresh basil leaves, or whatever you're into, and use low-fat cheese. Leave out the cheese and go gluten-free pasta for a vegan option, add tofu or whatever vegans do)

Serve with crusty Italian garlic bread and an awesome Italian salad like Caesar or I make a mean rendition of an "Olive Garden" salad that works as well; (I worked there in college, so here's the real recipe)

Hospitaliano Salad

• 1 bag romaine lettuce (or Italian blend) or you can hack up a head of romaine, which is really fresher in the end
• 2 Roma or sweet Campari tomatoes, sliced
• Small can/jar whole black olives
• Small jar pepperocini peppers
• 1/3 red onion, thinly sliced
• I add carrots, because my kids like carrots, the sweet, organic mini variety.
• Italian dressing of your choice Pre-made or you can make your own by mixing olive oil, vinegar, crushed garlic and fresh minced Italian spices (flat leaf parsley, basil, oregano, salt and pepper)
• Top with fresh parmesan and garlic croutons and fresh, ground pepper

Hospitaliano!

You should not have leftovers.

Really, and no one needs to know the whole meal cost you about $15.

Bellissimo!