Meaty Ziti

Meaty Ziti

1 pound ground beef round
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes or 1 (26-ounce) jar marinara sauce
1 clove garlic, crushed in a garlic press
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried basil
8 ounces uncooked ziti (2 C.)
1 (9-ounce) package frozen creamed spinach, thawed
1 (8-ounce) package pre-shredded mozzarella cheese (2 C.)

Crumble ground beef into a nonreactive large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring and breaking up lumps with a wooden spoon, 4 to 5 minutes until beef browns all over and is cooked through. Stir in tomatoes or marinara sauce, garlic, oregano and basil. Spoon 1 C. meat sauce on bottom of a 3-quart glass or ceramic casserole. Arrange ziti in an even layer on top of sauce. Pour remaining meat sauce over ziti. Spread creamed spinach evenly over the top with a knife. Cover baking dish with aluminum foil. (Dish can be made up to 1 day in advance to this point. Refrigerate until baking time.) Bake ziti on center rack of preheated 375-degree oven 30 minutes until bubbling. Remove baking dish from oven and carefully remove aluminum foil and set aside. Scatter mozzarella evenly over top and re-cover dish with foil. Let ziti rest 10 minutes until cheese melts. Serve at once. Makes 6 to 8 minutes.

Yield: 6 servings
Calories: 366
Fat: 16g
Fiber: 3g

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