Meatless Friday: Slow Cooker Baked Ziti

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For some of us it has become increasingly hard to get dinner on the table in a timely manner. There is always so much to do with the family. It is nice to have a recipe where you can mix a few ingredients and set your slow cooker on low. Get some of those much-needed chores done or spend more time with your family. Dust off that slow cooker and make things easier on you.

The best part of this recipe is that you do not cook the noodles. That is right–add them, not cooked, to the pan.

Now you may have some time to make some Italian bread to go with it.

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SLOW COOKER BAKED ZITI

INGREDIENTS:

1 15 ounce container ricotta cheese
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasonings
1 16 oz bag of shredded Italian cheese blend (I used Kraft)
1 cup water
2 24 ounce jars of pasta
1 pound box of ziti noodles, uncooked

DIRECTIONS:

Coat the inside of your slow cooker with cooking spray.
In bowl, combine ricotta, egg and 1/2 the bag of cheese. Set aside
In a large bowl, combine water, sauce and noodles. Put 1/4 of the noodles in the bottom of the slow cooker. Layer half of the ricotta mixture in the slow cooker, dropping small spoonfuls and then using the back of a spoon to make a even layer. Add half of the sauce and then the other half of the ricotta mixture. Pour the remaining sauce mixture over the top.
Use the remaining cheese to sprinkle over the top.
Cook on low heat for 4-6 hours.
Serve from slow cooker

Note: for a meat option, add 1/2 pound cooked ground meat and 1/2 pound cooked Italian sausage into the sauce before layering.

Peace be with you!

Copyright 2015 Veronica Gantley.
Photo courtesy of My Catholic Kitchen; all rights reserved.

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