04/15/2026
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Baked Ziti with plant based meatballs? I have to keep it real with you all, Iโve had a lot of baked ziti in my life, and Iโve cooked even more. But this right here? Honestly, it was better than most versions Iโve had that actually used meat. The flavor just hit different.
I used plant based home style meatballs and started them in the air fryer to get that crisp texture. Then, I let them simmer on the stove in a tomato basil marinara sauce to really soak up the seasoning, adding some red pepper flakes for a nice little kick at the end.
After that is the fun part, assembling and where this all comes together. I added sauce to the bottom of my tray and some thick layers of ziti, creamy ricotta, mozzarella into the tray and of course these amazing plant based meatballs all in between. I finished it all off with more fresh basil and a heavy hand of Parmesan and Romano cheese.
Also, weโre just gonna ignore the tray while giving a quick shout out to the store that used to be a dollar until they werenโt, for this funky looking thing. It was a last minute move and it definitely shows, but luckily the food is doing all the heavy lifting here and if youโre pescatarian or like myself whoโs considered a โPollo Pescatarianโ then this is absolutely the way to go. ๐๐ฅ