I made a delicious dinner last night – and the best part was that I had everything I needed on hand! It was also good that everyone in the family liked it. I will share the recipe with you here because its so nice to have a good go-to dinner. There wasn’t too much chopping or prep work and the whole thing didn’t take that long either. I won’t say its the healthiest dinner out there – but add a salad and enjoy the cheese!

1 (28 oz) can of whole peeled tomatoes

1 lb sweet or hot Italian sausage, casings removed

6 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

salt and pepper

3 cups water

12 oz (31/2 cups) ziti

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 ounce Parmesan cheese grated (1/2 cup)

1/4 cup chopped basil leaves

4 oz mozzarella cheese, shredded (1 cup)

 

1. Adjust oven rack to the middle position and heat oven to 475 degrees. Pulse tomatoes in a food processor until coarsely ground and no large pieces remain. About 12 pulses.
2. Cook sausage in a 12 inch oven safe non-stick skillet over medium-high heat, breaking up meat with wooden spoon, until no longer pink, about 4 minutes. Stir in garlic and pepper flakes until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in tomatoes and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer gently until tomatoes no longer taste raw. About 10 minutes.
3. Stir in water and pasta. Cover, increase heat to medium-high and cook at vigorous simmer, stirring often, until pasta is tender, 15-18 minutes.
4. Stir in cream, Parmesan, and basil and season with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle mozzarella evenly over top. Transfer skillet to over and bake until cheese has melted and browned, 10-15 minutes. Serve and enjoy!