Description
Cottage Cheese Baked Ziti features layers of ziti pasta, savory ground turkey, and creamy cheeses. This dish combines convenience with rich flavors, making it the ideal choice for a quick dinner or comforting meal that everyone will love.
Ingredients
Scale
- 16 oz. ziti, like barilla protein+ or kaizen
- ¼ cup low-sodium chicken broth, or vegetable
- 1 lb. ground turkey
- 3 tbsp garlic, minced
- ½ cup white onion, diced
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- 2 ½ cups marinara sauce
- ½ tsp italian seasoning
- ½ tsp onion powder
- ½ cup low fat cottage cheese
- ½ cup low fat ricotta cheese
- 1 cup low-moisture mozzarella, divided into ¾ cups
- ½ cup parmesan, shredded or grated
- Fresh Basil for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400° F.
- Boil a large pot of water and cook the pasta for a few minutes less than the package instructions.
- In a large skillet, add the broth, garlic, and onion. Heat over medium until the onions soften.
- Add the ground turkey to the skillet, breaking it up with a spatula.
- Season with salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, and onion powder. Cook for 5 minutes, or until the meat is browned.
- Lower the heat, then stir in the marinara sauce. Simmer while preparing the cheese mixture.
- Blend the cottage cheese and ricotta together. Mix in ¾ cup of mozzarella and all the Parmesan by hand.
- Mix the cooked pasta into the skillet with the turkey and sauce.
- In a 9-inch by 13-inch casserole dish, layer half of the pasta mixture, add the cheese layer, and smooth it out.
- Top with the remaining pasta and meat mixture, then sprinkle the remaining ¾ cup of mozzarella on top.
- Bake in the oven for 25 minutes until golden brown. Garnish with fresh basil leaves before serving.
Notes
You can substitute ground turkey with ground beef or chicken if preferred.
For extra flavor, feel free to add your favorite vegetables to the meat mixture.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 360
- Sugar: 6g
- Sodium: 450mg
- Fat: 12g
- Saturated Fat: 4g
- Unsaturated Fat: 8g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 38g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 28g
- Cholesterol: 70mg