Two-Cheese Ziti — The Table That Holds Us All

Christmas 2022. The annual tradition continues in this kitchen that has held every holiday since I started cooking through cancer and came out the other side with a cast iron skillet and a refusal to stop. I am 39 and Christmas means what it has always meant: too much food, the right people, and the gratitude spoken aloud because life taught me that gratitude unspoken is gratitude wasted.

The table is full. Mason (11) and Lily (9) are here, growing taller and more themselves with each passing year. Tom is here, beside me, where he has been since the day he showed up with wildflowers and patience and the quiet understanding that love is not a grand gesture but a daily one.

Brett is here — always here, every holiday, every Wednesday, the constant brother in the wheelchair who has been my anchor since we were children on a ranch that no longer exists. Kyle calls from wherever the Army has him, and his voice on the phone is the voice of the brother who left and came back and left again, and the leaving and returning is the rhythm of this family.

I made minestrone this week, because Christmas demands the food that says: I am here, you are here, we are together, and together is the only word that matters. The recipe is the same as last year and the year before and all the years stretching back to the ranch kitchen where Diane stood at 6 AM making cinnamon rolls for a family that ate them without knowing they were eating love. I know now. I've always known. And I make the food and serve it and watch my family eat and think: this. This is why I survived. For this table. For this food. For these people. For this.

This Christmas, with Brett in his chair and Mason and Lily growing taller by the minute and Tom’s hand finding mine in the kitchen the way it always does, I wanted a dish that felt like the table itself — generous, layered, and built to feed everyone you love all at once. Two-Cheese Ziti is exactly that: it’s warm and unapologetic, the kind of thing you pull from the oven and set in the center of the table and watch people lean toward, and it carries all the same intention as the minestrone — I am here, you are here, and together is the only word that matters.

Two-Cheese Ziti

Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 40 minutes | Total Time: 1 hour | Servings: 8

Ingredients

• 1 lb ziti pasta
• 1 lb ground Italian sausage (mild or sweet)
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 jar (24 oz) marinara sauce
• 1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, drained
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
• Salt and black pepper to taste
• 15 oz whole-milk ricotta cheese
• 1 large egg
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
• Fresh parsley, chopped, for garnish

Instructions

1. Preheat and prep. Preheat your oven to 375°F. Lightly grease a 9x13-inch baking dish and set aside.
2. Cook the pasta. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook ziti according to package directions until just al dente, about 8–9 minutes. Drain and set aside — do not rinse.
3. Brown the sausage. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, cook the ground sausage, breaking it up with a spoon, until browned and cooked through, about 6–8 minutes. Transfer to a plate and drain excess fat, leaving about 1 tablespoon in the pan.
4. Build the sauce. In the same skillet, sauté the onion over medium heat until softened, about 4 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more. Stir in the marinara sauce, diced tomatoes, basil, oregano, and red pepper flakes. Return the sausage to the pan. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer for 10 minutes.
5. Mix the ricotta layer. In a medium bowl, stir together the ricotta, egg, 1 cup of the mozzarella, and 1/4 cup of the Parmesan until well combined. Season lightly with salt and pepper.
6. Assemble the ziti. Add the cooked ziti to the meat sauce and stir to combine. Spread half the pasta mixture into the prepared baking dish. Dollop the ricotta mixture evenly over the top, then layer the remaining pasta mixture over the ricotta. Sprinkle the remaining 1 cup mozzarella and 1/4 cup Parmesan over the top.
7. Bake. Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake an additional 15–20 minutes, until the cheese is melted, bubbly, and golden at the edges.
8. Rest and serve. Let the ziti rest for 5 minutes before serving. Garnish with fresh chopped parsley and bring the whole dish straight to the table.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 540 | Protein: 31g | Fat: 22g | Carbs: 54g | Fiber: 3g | Sodium: 870mg