ZITI WITH CREAM CHEESE RECIPES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°. Grease a 9”-x-13” baking dish with cooking spray. In a large pot of salted, boiling water, cook ziti until al dente. Drain. Make alfredo: In a large, high-sided skillet over medium heat, melt butter. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Whisk in flour and cook until the mixture is bubbling and golden, 1 minute more. Slowly pour in half-and-half, whisking constantly. Bring mixture to a simmer and stir in ½ cup Parmesan. Let simmer until sauce thickens, 2 to 3 minutes, then season with salt and pepper. Stir in marinara, 1 cup mozzarella, fontina, romano, and ricotta, then add pasta and toss until everything is well coated. Transfer to prepared baking dish and top with remaining cup of mozzarella.  In a small bowl, mix together remaining ½ cup Parmesan and Panko. Sprinkle evenly over top of dish.  Bake until golden and bubbly, about 30 minutes. Garnish with parsley to serve.

Steps:

• Make the tomato sauce: Heat oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is totally softened and translucent (without letting it brown), 8 to 10 minutes. Add tomato paste and continue to cook, stirring until it has turned a deeper brick-red color, tinting the oil and onions a fiery orange color, about 2 minutes. Crush the whole tomatoes by hand and add them (including the juice) and the tomato purée to the pot, stirring to scrape up any bits from the bottom of the pot. Season with salt and pepper and add red pepper flakes, if using. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomato sauce has thickened and flavors have come together, 20 to 30 minutes.
• Prepare the filling: In a medium bowl, combine ricotta, heavy cream and 1/2 cup Parmesan. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.
• Prepare the pasta: As the sauce cooks, heat oven to 425 degrees, and place a large pot of salted water to boil on the stove.
• Cook pasta until it’s nearly al dente. (You want to undercook the pasta slightly, as it will continue to cook in the oven. A good way to do this is cook it 2 minutes less than you normally would if preparing it al dente.) Reserving 1 cup of the pasta cooking liquid, drain pasta and rinse with cool water; set aside while the tomato sauce finishes cooking.
• Once tomato sauce is done, stir in reserved pasta water.
• Place pasta in a large bowl and add 2 cups sauce. Stir to coat pasta evenly encouraging the sauce to go inside each tube.
• Spoon a bit of remaining sauce on the bottom of a 3-quart baking dish and top with 1/3 of the pasta. Spoon 1/3 of the remaining sauce on top, dollop with half the ricotta mixture and scatter 1/3 of the mozzarella on top of that. Repeat, beginning with the pasta, one more time. For the final layer, add the last 1/3 of pasta and the last of the sauce. Dot remaining mozzarella on top and shave a bit more Parmesan on top of that. Place baking dish on top of a sheet pan lined with parchment paper to catch any drips. Place in the oven and bake until the edges are golden brown and bubbling and the top has browned nicely, 30 to 40 minutes.
• Let cool slightly before eating with a big green leafy salad.