America’s Test Kitchen – Serves 10
Kelly, a friend from Canyon Crest Athletic Club, asked about a good pasta recipe for her family’s traditional Christmas Eve dinner. I knew the baked ziti recipe was the perfect dish. It is the ultimate in comfort food, a great dish for a crowd and it won’t break the bank. It can even be made a day ahead. The popular Italian dish is a rich combination of pasta, marinara sauce, and cheese. It uses three different types of cheese: mozzarella for its beautiful melting quality, Parmesan for depth of flavor, and cottage cheese for some creaminess. But here’s the thing. My recipes at that time were written by hand in a spiral notebook. On another page I might have a shopping list, a guest list and what I served with it. My mishmash of recipes were disorganized, but a big step up from times when I wrote recipes on the back of utility bills or envelopes and shoved them in a binder. I trusted Kelly so I shared the spiral notebook. When she gave it back she looked guilty as she confessed to Xeroxing the entire thing. I just had to laugh as I thought of its general state of disorder. She laughed with me in relief that I wasn’t upset about the land grab of recipes.
Here is the thing. I love to talk about food and share recipes. I will bore you to tears with details about techniques and flavor profiles. Your eyes will glaze over, and the thought bubble over your head will say, “I’d much rather taste it than sit here listening to you talk about how brown means flavor.” So when someone asks for a recipe, I typically hand it over, along with three others that make a perfect meal plan. I still have the messy notebook as a souvenir of that time, but I am thankful for one major outcome of this project. The recipes are now typed, organized and easy to share.
Ingredients
- 1 lb Whole milk cottage cheese
- 2 Large eggs, lightly beaten
- 3 oz Parmesan cheese, grated (about 1 1/2 cups)
- Salt
- 1 lb Ziti or other short, tubular pasta
- 2T Olive oil
- 5 Garlic cloves, minced
- 1 Can tomato sauce (28-oz)
- 1 Can diced tomatoes (14.5-oz)
- 1 t Dried oregano
- ½ C Fresh basil, chopped (plus an additional 2 T for topping)
- 2 t Sugar
- pepper¾ t Cornstarch
- 1 C heavy cream
- 8 oz Low-moisture mozzarella cheese, cut into 1/4-inch cubes (about 1 1/2 cups)
Directions
- Adjust the oven rack to the middle position and preheat to 350 degrees.
- Whisk together the cottage cheese, eggs, and one cup of the Parmesan in a medium bowl. Set aside.
- Bring four quarts of water to boil in a large Dutch oven over high heat. Add one tablespoon salt and pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, until the pasta begins to soften, five to seven minutes. Drain the pasta and leave it in a colander (do not wash the Dutch oven).
- Meanwhile, heat the oil and garlic in a large skillet over medium heat until garlic is fragrant but not brown, about two minutes.
- Stir in tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and oregano, and simmer until thickened, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in 1/2 cup basil and sugar, then season to taste with salt and pepper.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the cornstarch and heavy cream, then transfer the mixture to the empty Dutch oven set over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and cook until thickened, three to four minutes.
- Remove the pot from the heat, add the cottage cheese mixture, one cup of tomato sauce, and 3/4 cup of mozzarella, then stir.
- Add pasta and stir to coat.
- Transfer the pasta mixture to a 13-by-9-inch baking dish and spread the remaining tomato sauce evenly over the top. Sprinkle remaining mozzarella and Parmesan over the top, then cover tightly with foil and bake for 30 minutes.
- Remove the foil and continue to cook until the cheese is bubbling and beginning to brown, about 30 minutes longer. Cool for 20 minutes. Sprinkle with the remaining 2 tablespoons of basil and serve.
Mangia by Pia 