Baked Ziti with Chicken Italian Sausage

I make my own sauce with olive oil, sauteed onions, garlic (lots of garlic), canned peeled San Marino tomatoes, and fresh chopped basil. Usually, if I cook it long enough, tomato paste isn't needed but you can toss some in to get it thicker, faster.

I substitute chicken Italian sausage to cut back on the fresh, use bagged mozzarella for the meat and pasta mixture then top is up with fresh, sliced mozzarella and more chopped basil.

It's my go-to crowd-pleaser and is perfect with crusty bread and a side salad with champagne vinegarette!