Baked Ziti

Some friends of ours recently had their second child. While they are the most low key parents I know, and seem to be able to tackle anything life thows their way with the greatest of ease, I wanted to do something nice to try and make their lives a bit easier as they juggle a newborn and a nearly three year old.

Looking for something that I thought would hold up to freezing in case they wanted to keep it for another time, I saw this recipe for baked ziti by Cook's Illustrated. I've never made it before, and I must confess a put a little of it to the side and baked it in a separate dish for us so I could try it. It was pretty good - I find baked pasta usually mushy but this held up pretty well. It tastes better than it looks.

Serves 8 to 10. Published March 1, 2009. From Cook's Illustrated.
The test kitchen prefers baked ziti made with heavy cream, but whole milk can be substituted by increasing the amount of cornstarch to 2 teaspoons and increasing the cooking time in step 3 by 1 to 2 minutes. Our preferred brand of mozzarella is Dragone Whole Milk Mozzarella. Part-skim mozzarella can also be used, but avoid preshredded cheese, as it does not melt well. For tips on cooking with cottage cheese, see related How To Cook.

Ingredients
1 pound whole milk cottage cheese or 1 percent cottage cheese
2 large eggs , lightly beaten
3 ounces grated Parmesan cheese (about 1 1/2 cups)
Table salt
1 pound ziti or other short, tubular pasta
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
5 medium garlic cloves , minced or pressed through garlic press (about 5 teaspoons)
1(28-ounce) can tomato sauce
1(14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves
1teaspoon sugar
Ground black pepper
3/4 teaspoon cornstarch
1 cup heavy cream (see note)
8ounces low-moisture whole-milk mozzarella cheese , cut into 1/4-inch pieces (about 1 1/2 cups)

Instructions
1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk cottage cheese, eggs, and 1 cup Parmesan together in medium bowl; set aside. Bring 4 quarts of water to boil in large Dutch oven over high heat. Stir in 1 tablespoon salt and pasta; cook, stirring occasionally, until pasta begins to soften but is not yet cooked through, 5 to 7 minutes. Drain pasta and leave in colander (do not wash Dutch oven).

2. Meanwhile, heat oil and garlic in 12-inch skillet over medium heat until garlic is fragrant but not brown, about 2 minutes. Stir in tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and oregano; simmer until thickened, about 10 minutes. Off heat, stir in ½ cup basil and sugar, then season with salt and pepper.

3. Stir cornstarch into heavy cream in small bowl; transfer mixture to now-empty Dutch oven set over medium heat. Bring to simmer and cook until thickened, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove pot from heat and add cottage cheese mixture, 1 cup tomato sauce, and ¾ cup mozzarella, then stir to combine. Add pasta and stir to coat thoroughly with sauce.

4. Transfer pasta mixture to 13- by 9-inch baking dish and spread remaining tomato sauce evenly over pasta. Sprinkle remaining ¾ cup mozzarella and remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan over top. Cover baking dish tightly with foil and bake for 30 minutes.

5. Remove foil and continue to cook until cheese is bubbling and beginning to brown, about 30 minutes longer. Cool for 20 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons basil and serve.