This is great for a large group or to eat on for a few days. I've found that you can also freeze half of it to eat at a later time if you'd like. I actually made this dish a little healthier by using ground turkey instead of ground beef, wheat pasta, light sour cream, and all fat-free cheeses and found that it is still hearty and delicious. The only thing I did not skimp on was the spaghetti sauce since it is such a key ingredient for taste - I used
Classico Tomato & Basil. I'm sure you can make the dish with a sauce containing lower sugars and sodium content and still be great.
Ingredients:
1 pound dry ziti pasta
1 onion, chopped
1 pound lean ground beef
2 (26 ounce) jars spaghetti sauce
6 ounces provolone cheese, sliced
1 1/2 cups sour cream
6 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
Directions:
- Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add ziti pasta, and cook until al dente, about 8 minutes; drain.
- In a large skillet, brown onion and ground beef over medium heat. Add spaghetti sauce, and simmer 15 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter a 9x13 inch baking dish. Layer as follows: 1/2 of the ziti, Provolone cheese, sour cream, 1/2 sauce mixture, remaining ziti, mozzarella cheese and remaining sauce mixture. Top with grated Parmesan cheese.
- Bake for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until cheeses are melted.