Meatball Baked Ziti

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Meatball Baked Ziti - Cheesy baked ziti with the easiest homemade meatballs. Quick to prepare and so so good. Comfort food at its best here!

Cheesy baked ziti with the easiest homemade meatballs. Quick to prepare and so so good. Comfort food at its best here!

Meatball Baked Ziti - Cheesy baked ziti with the easiest homemade meatballs. Quick to prepare and so so good. Comfort food at its best here!

Baked ziti. My all-time favorite kind of comfort food.

Except, I couldn’t just leave it like that. No, I couldn’t. I threw in some homemade meatballs and topped this entire bad boy with burrata cheese before baking it to absolute cheesy, melted perfection.

I personally prefer burrata here but if it’s not your jam, mozzarella would be a great substitute. And if you are short on time, you can absolutely substitute store-bought meatballs. (Side note: I highly recommend Trader Joe’s party size mini meatballs – they are so so good and a guilty pleasure of mine).

Serve with the remaining red wine, crusty bread, and a binge-worthy Netflix show. I recently finished Virgin River in 1.5 days and cannot wait for the second season!

Meatball Baked Ziti - Cheesy baked ziti with the easiest homemade meatballs. Quick to prepare and so so good. Comfort food at its best here!

Meatball Baked Ziti

Meatball Baked Ziti

Cheesy baked ziti with the easiest homemade meatballs. Quick to prepare and so so good. Comfort food at its best here!
4.9 stars (19 ratings)

Ingredients

  • 1 pound ziti pasta
  • ¾ pound ground beef
  • ¾ pound ground pork
  • cup Panko
  • 2 large egg yolks
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • ½ teaspoon dried basil
  • ½ teaspoon dried oregano
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • cup dry red wine
  • 1 (32-ounce) jar marinara sauce
  • 3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
  • 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
  • 8 ounces burrata cheese, torn into large pieces

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly oil a 9 x 13 baking dish or coat with nonstick spray.
  • In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions for al dente; drain well.
  • In a large bowl, combine ground beef, ground pork, Panko, egg yolks, garlic, basil and oregano; season with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Using a wooden spoon or clean hands, stir until well combined. Roll the mixture into 1-to-1-1/4-inch meatballs, forming about 24 meatballs.
  • Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium high heat. Add meatballs, in batches, and cook until all sides are browned, about 2-3 minutes. Return meatballs to the Dutch oven.
  • Stir in wine, scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the Dutch oven.
  • Stir in marinara sauce. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until flavors have blended, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in pasta, basil and parsley.
  • Spread pasta mixture into the prepared baking dish; top with burrata.
  • Place into oven and bake until bubbly, about 25-30 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes.
  • Serve immediately.

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