Crowd Pleasing Weeknight Baked Ziti
 
 
by:
Serves: 8
Ingredients
  • 1 pound ziti
  • Salt
  • ½ cup prepared pesto
  • ¼ cup all-purpose flour
  • 1½ cups each vegetable broth, evaporated milk, and canned crushed tomatoes
  • 12 ounces mozzarella cheese, 8 ounces cubed and 4 ounces grated
  • ½ cup Parmesan cheese
Instructions
  1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Bring a generous 2 quarts of water and 1 tablespoon of salt to boil in a large soup kettle. Add ziti and, using back-of-the-box times as a guide, cook partially covered and stirring frequently at first to prevent sticking, until just tender. Drain pasta and return it to the pot.
  2. Meanwhile, heat pesto over medium-high heat in a small Dutch oven until it starts to sizzle. Whisk in flour to make a smooth paste. Whisk in broth and milk and cook until mixture starts to simmer and thicken up. Whisk in tomatoes and continue to cook to heat through. Pour sauce over pasta, along with cubed mozzarella; toss to coat. Pour into a greased 13- by 9-inch baking dish and sprinkle with the grated mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. Bake until bubbly and golden about 20 minutes. (If you want a more golden brown top, broil for a couple of minutes.)
Recipe by Three Many Cooks at https://threemanycooks.com/recipes/meaty-mains/crowd-pleasing-weeknight-baked-ziti/