Easy Baked Ziti w/ Spicy Sausage

Easy Baked Ziti with Spicy Sausage

My mother is Italian and I grew up eating a lot of pasta, so it's really no surprise that I cook a lot of pasta dishes for my family.  I love baked ziti because it has most of the flavors of lasagna with half of the work, it is great leftover, and it always reminds me of home.  My husband refers to it as my "default meal"... when I'm running out of dinner options, I can usually still make some ziti.

You don't have to use spicy sausage for this recipe, you can substitute any Italian sausage that you like.  However, if you want to give the spicy kind a try, this is a great dish for it, as the multiple cheeses help to balance out the heat of the sausage.

I got the sausage for this dish at the Story City Locker and it was delicious!  However, if you can't make it to Story City, you can use any good Italian sausage.  You also do not have to limit your pasta choice to only ziti - you can use radiatori, fusilli, penne, or anything you have on hand that will catch some cheese and sauce.  This is an awesome meal to make ahead and stick in the freezer for a lazy day!

What You Need;

 1 tbsp olive oil

1 lb spicy Italian sausage

1 box/bag uncooked ziti pasta

salt

3 cups marinara sauce (I use my own sauce, but you can use your favorite brand)

1 tub (15 oz) whole milk or part-skim ricotta cheese

1 cup fresh mozzarella (mozz pearls or larger balls cut into cubes)

1/2 cup grated Pecorino Romano or Parmesan cheese

fresh basil (for garnish)

Place a large pot of water over high heat on the stove.  When water boils, add a generous amount (1-2 tsp) of salt, then stir in pasta and cook according to package instructions.  *Make sure to check your pasta as it cooks and drain when it is al-dente.  Overcooked pasta is no good!  When pasta is drained, transfer it to a large baking dish and set aside.

While pasta cooks, heat olive oil over medium-high in a large skillet.  Add sausage and 2 tbsp marinara sauce.  As sausage cooks, stir often and break it apart into smaller chunks as much as possible. When the sausage is fully cooked, remove from heat.  Use a slotted spoon to drain any fat/grease from the sausage and transfer to the baking dish with cooked pasta.

To the baking dish, also add the cubed mozzarella and toss with the pasta and sausage.  Add the ricotta to the top in dollops with a tablespoon.  When you have added all of the ricotta, pour remaining sauce evenly over the top of your mixture and finish by sprinkling with the grated Romano cheese.

 At this point you can either cover the dish and place it in the fridge or freezer to bake later, or heat your oven and bake now.  When ready to bake, preheat oven to 375 degrees and allow ziti to come to room temperature before baking if it was refrigerated or frozen.  Bake, uncovered, for 30-40 minutes until sauce is bubbly.  Serve hot, garnished with fresh basil leaves torn into small pieces and enjoy!

Classy Jucy Lucy

The Classy Jucy Lucy

It's time to grill, people, and who doesn't love a great burger?  With, or without cheese... on a bun, or off... meat, or meatless... it's all good in the summer time!  My personal favorite is pretty much anything with cheese, so I have always thought the Jucy Lucy was brilliant idea.  For those of you who are not familiar with this gooey concept, the Jucy Lucy/Juicy Lucy is somewhat of a double cheeseburger, only much more amazing.  The Jucy Lucy is two burger patties with cheese placed between them, sealed around the edges, cooked to create a melty, gooey center and topped with more cheese... Like I said - amazing!

For this recipe I've classed it up a bit with my favorite cheese, smoked Gouda, and a couple of other fun elements.  I made my burgers with local ground beef from the Story City Locker, and you probably think, "ground beef is ground beef."  Well it is, until you've tried the fresh, local stuff... then you may think differently, because, like many other foods, nothing compares to fresh and local.  Anyway, give this a try with whatever you have and prefer, whether that is local beef, ground pork, or even a homemade veggie burger mixture.

What You Need:

1 lb ground beef (or other desired burger component)

1-2 Chipotle peppers in Adobo sauce

burger/grill seasoning

salt & pepper

3 slices of thick-cut smoked Gouda (or other smoky cheese)

6 slices of pepper cheese, such as Pepperjack, Habenero, or Hatch Pepper cheese

lettuce & tomato

3 burger buns

Place the ground beef in a bowl and break apart slightly with your hands.  Chop your Chipotle peppers and mix them, with 1 tbsp of the Adobo sauce, into the meat.  *Do not over work the meat - the more you mix, the more it loses it's natural tastes and textures.  

Divide the beef into three equal sections and, working one section at a time, make two thin burger patties out of each section, creating six patties total.  Use your fingers to make a slight well in center of each patty.  Place a thick piece of smoked Gouda in the center of three of the patties.  Place another patty on top of each of those and press down around the edges to seal the two patties together.  Sprinkle the top of each burger with salt, pepper and your favorite grill seasoning - I used Grilla Gorilla X from Saltlickers, because it's just so stinkin' good!  Gently pat your seasoning into the meat and set aside while you start your grill.

When you are ready to cook your Jucy Lucys, spray your hot grill with grill spray and place the burgers on the grate over medium-high heat.  Cook for 2 minutes, then use a metal spatula to turn each burger slightly to create diamond grill marks.  

Continue cooking for 2 more minutes, then flip the patties.  After flipping, top each burger with two pieces of pepper cheese and cover your grill.  Cook for 2 minutes, then turn slightly like before.  At this point you can also slice your burger buns (I actually used Asiago bagels this time) and place them around the edge of the grill to toast them slightly.  After 2 more minutes, remove the burgers and toasted buns from the grill and place on heat-proof plate.  Serve burgers topped with lettuce and tomato and enjoy!