Baked Ziti

This is definitely my favorite "go to" meal of the week: Baked Ziti! I love that it has a little more to it than spaghetti and it is sooo easy to make. And it is the best (and easiest) baked ziti that I have ever eaten (but I guess I am just partial). This recipe is for 2 people and we usually have atleast one night of leftovers.

Ingredients
1 jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce (I prefer Publix brand with mushrooms)
1 small shallot, finely chopped (if you like an onion flavor to your sauce, optional)
1 spaghetti seasoning packet
a 1/2 lb of hamburger meat (use more if you like it really meaty)
1 small can of mushrooms (I prefer the baby portobello can)
1/2 lb box of ziti rigati (make sure it has little lines; it helps to pick up the sauce)
1 bag of Mozzarella or 6 Cheese Italian
Butter
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees

2. Line a 8-inch square pyrex dish with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray or rub with butter (makes for easy clean-up)!

3. In a large saucepan, saute bits of onion until they are translucent and then add ground beef; brown. Add a little salt and pepper to give the meat more flavor

4. Once ground beef is browned, add the jar of spaghetti sauce. Once the jar is empty, to clean out all the sauce, pour the can of mushrooms and their juice into the jar and shake it around. Add the mushrooms and water to the sauce to give it extra flavor and to thin it out. Next, add the spaghetti seasoning packet to the sauce. Bring to a boil on medium high. Once the sauce has started to bubble, drop to temperature to a simmer and let it thicken.

5. While sauce is simmering, take a large pasta pot and fill it 3/4 of the way full. Cover the water and bring it to a boil. Once the water has come to a boil, salt liberally. This is your only chance to give the noodles added flavor. Poar in the box of noodles. Boil noodles as directed by your box. Make sure they are al dente (with a bite to them) because they will continue to cook in the oven. When noodles are al dente, drain them (do not rinse).

6. Pour warm noodles into the buttered, lined dish and add the sauce. Once the sauce is poured into the dish, take a handleful of the mozzarella cheese and add it to the sauce and noodles. Stir the noodles, cheese, and sauce until it is all incorporated together. Sprinkle the top of the noodles and sauce with the remaining mozzarella cheese. Once the dish is all assembled, take a tab of butter (or two) and break it apart on top of the cheese. This will help brown the cheese and give an added bit of flavor. Cover with aluminum foil.

7. Place in heated oven and baked for about 30 minutes or until cheese is melted and browned. About 15 minutes into the baking process, remove the aluminum foil from the top of the ziti. (The foil is there to make sure the ziti doesn't brown too quickly and burn). Enjoy!!