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School is back in session and you have a busy day ahead. That means you need a great make-ahead meal. My Easy 5-Ingredient Baked Ziti (Gluten Free Option) uses simple ingredients and is perfect for those busy weeknights.
Ingredients – gluten-free penne pasta – marinara sauce – extra virgin olive oil – ground turkey – cottage cheese – Italian seasoning – salt – pepper – reserved pasta water
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Start with bringing water to a boil and cooking the pasta in a large pot of salted water. Boil the pasta to al dente, following the instructions on the package. Before draining the pasta, reserve a 1/2 cup of the starchy cooking water.
Preheat a large skillet on medium heat and add about a tablespoon of olive oil. Add the ground turkey. With a large wooden spoon, break up the turkey meat. Cook for about 5-7 minutes and then add the seasonings. Continue to cook for about 15 minutes or until the turkey is fully cooked and has no more pink. Add the marinara and let it simmer for about 5-7 minutes. When it’s done, add in the reserved salted pasta water. Gently stir it to combine
When it’s done, carefully remove the foil and season with additional salt or seasoning if needed. Let it cool for 5 minutes. Enjoy this delicious dish with your favorite crusty bread or salad
Some tips: Fresh herbs always zest up a dish. Italian parlsey or fresh basil are both scrumptious toppers. Ziti pasta is usually rigatoni pasta but feel free to use any tubed pasta or pasta of choice. I use gluten-free pasta in this recipe. I recommend Barilla or Banza ( because they have it at Costco and it comes in five-5 oz packages) which is garbanzo bean-based pasta. But any type of gluten-free pastas work. Variations of ground meat will taste good in this pasta bake such as ground beef or mild Italian sausage.