I'm back... with Ziti

I've been on blogging hiatus lately. Beating Bowser in Super Mario Galaxy for Nintendo Wii became a priority over the past couple weeks. Fortunately for me (and my cooking skills), we've successfully collected all 120 stars, beaten Bowser twice, and unlocked Luigi to make him playable.

A few days ago, I made a really great baked ziti, and I thought I'd share it with you all. It's a Robin Miller recipe. I'm torn on her. I really like her concept, but most recipes I've tried have just been so-so. This one was great, though. It got a big thumbs up from both of us. This recipe is HUGE, though, so I highly suggest making a 1/2 batch, unless you have a family of 20 or so.

Photo from www.foodnetwork.com

Baked Ziti with Sweet Turkey Sausage
Recipe by Robin Miller
Serves 8-12
Total Cook Time - 1 hr

1 pound ziti noodles
1 pound sweet turkey sausage, cut into 1/2-inch thick slices
2 (28-ounce) cans diced tomatoes with seasonings (garlic and oregano)
2 teaspoons dried thyme (I omitted both Thyme & Rosemary in favor of Italian Seasoning)
2 teaspoons dried rosemary
(I also added some minced garlic)
1 (15-ounce) container regular or part-skim ricotta cheese
4 cups grated part-skim mozzarella cheese, reserve 1 cup, for topping (I also added a handful of a shredded cheese blend).
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 cup grated Parmesan Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside. Meanwhile, cook sausage in a hot skillet over medium heat until golden brown on all sides. Add tomatoes, thyme and rosemary and simmer 5 minutes. Remove from heat. In a medium bowl, combine ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese and garlic powder and mix well. Spoon 1/2 cup of the tomato sauce in the bottom of a 4-quart casserole dish. Top with half of the cooked ziti. Top with half of the cheese mixture. Top with 1 cup of the tomato sauce. Repeat layers (remaining ziti and remaining cheese mixture). Top with remaining tomato sauce. Sprinkle remaining mozzarella and parmesan cheese over top. Cover with foil and bake 30 minutes. Uncover and bake 15 more minutes, until cheese is golden and bubbly.