Breaking News! You can make pasta in your slow cooker. This Crock Pot Baked Ziti was made completely in the slow cooker. Cheesy, gooey pasta is a must try in your slow cooker! I know, I know. It’s hard to believe!
You don’t even have to cook the pasta before. I thought that the pasta would turn to mush but they ended up just like regular baked ziti. The best part is that I didn’t have to heat up my kitchen since it was 102 degrees the day I made it! There are actually tons of Italian recipes you can make in your slow cooker, two other easy ones are Creamy Italian Chicken and Bruschetta Chicken, if you aren’t feeling pasta.
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Secret Step for Crock Pot Baked Ziti
The secret is that you don’t add any water to the pasta and the tomato sauce slowly cooks the pasta for you. This recipe is so simple that all you have to do is mix a few ingredients together and then layer them all just like the traditional baked ziti.
Cheese, Cheese, and more Cheese!
The triple cheese blend makes this baked ziti a melty cheesy masterpiece. All of these cheeses add a unique flavor and gives you that real Italian restaurant Baked Ziti experience.
– Ricotta
– Parmesan
– Mozzarella
Types of Pasta
I actually used this gluten free penne pasta instead of ziti! I couldn’t find gluten free ziti at the grocery store. As you can see it doesn’t make a difference at all. You can use any tube pasta you should be good to go.
Ingredients to Make Crock Pot Baked Ziti
Jarred pasta sauce or homemade pasta sauce
Uncooked ziti/penne pasta
Ricotta cheese
Eggs
Freshly grated parmesan cheese
Mozzarella cheese
Basil
Salt and Pepper
Step by Step Directions for Crock Pot Baked Ziti
STEP 1. Spray Slow Cooker with Non Stick Spray
STEP 2. Mix Ricotta Cheese with egg and spices.
STEP 3. Layer sauce on bottom of the Slow Cooker
STEP 4. Layer Noodles
STEP 5. Scoop Five Dollops of Ricotta
STEP 6. Add Layer of Mozzarella
STEP 7. Repeat these layers two times times.
STEP 8. Add one more layer of pasta, sauce, mozzarella and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. (No Noodles on this layer)
STEP 9. Cook on high for 2 1/2 hours
Perfect for Potluck
Crock Pot Baked Ziti makes A LOT of pasta! I love to make this as a main dish to bring to potlucks and everyone always raves about it. This will easily serve 6-8 people with large portions for a family dinner or you can freeze the leftovers and eat it later. We always freeze our leftovers and then eat it the following week!
Food Allergies
Gluten Free – I make everything gluten free in our house because my husband has celiac disease, which is when you are allergic to gluten. Our favorite pasta is the Gluten Free Barillla Pasta line. It doesn’t have the after taste of some pasta’s made with beans. I find that it is the best one at staying together while cooking. Some brands disintegrate especially when using in this kind of recipe where the pasta is soaking in sauce soaking.
If you are not gluten free swap the gluten free pasta for any ziti or penne.
Need A New Crock Pot?
My favorite is this Crock Pot 7 quart Programmable Slow Cooker. First and foremost, I love being able to set the timer in case I’m not home when the food is finished cooking and it just switches to warm. Plus you can lock the lid and just carry it to a party. Not only is it easy to carry but also you will never lose another Tupperware or serving dish again at a potluck party!
Crock Pot Baked Ziti
Ingredients
- 32 oz ricotta
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon basil
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan plus more for topping
- 48 oz marina sauce 2 jars (24 oz jars)
- 12 oz gluten free penne
- 16 oz shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Spray entire slow cooker insert with non-stick spray.
- In large bowl, mix ricotta with two eggs, 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, basil, salt and pepper.
- Cover bottom of slow cooker with sauce.
- Layer pasta on top of sauce.
- Take 5 scoops of the ricotta mixture drop onto sauce.
- Top with a layer of mozzarella cheese.
- Repeat steps 3-5 two more times.
- End with layer of sauce, mozzarella and parmesan.
- Cook on high for 2 1/2 hours.
- Serve with grated parmesan cheese on top.
Nutrition
More Casseroles
Looking for more easy casseroles? Try this easy Mexican Casserole.
Slow Cooker Enchilada Casserole
Pat says
Can I use one jar of pasta sauce and one 15 oz can of beef broth so that it has less of a tomato taste?
allisonetreadwell says
Hi Pat! I’m worried that that much beef broth might be too much and make the noodles mushy. I would start with half a can of beef broth and one can of tomato.
DeAnn says
What happens if you mix all the ingredients together as opposed to layering?
allisonetreadwell says
Hi DeAnn! I think it would be fine but I haven’t done that before. The most important part is making sure the noodles are fully covered in the sauce so just make sure to set aside some to cover the top.
TK says
I just used my last 2 eggs earlier, can we make this without the egg?
allisonetreadwell says
HI TK! Yes, people have made it without eggs and it is still delicious. Hope you enjoy it!
Li says
It’s not clear if noodles get cooked first? And how much jarred sauce?
Thanks
Connie Darby says
Hi,
Can I had cooked Italian sausage to the recipe? I just don’t want it to be greasy.
It looks delicious.
Thanks
Connie Darby
Allison Treadwell says
Hi Connie- You can absolutely put Italian sausage in it! I have done it before and it was delicious. I used ground Italian sausage so I did brown it and drain the fat before I mixed it in with the sauce. Hope you enjoy it!
Holly Thomasson says
I cannot wait to try this! I am also gluten intolerant and I agree with you on the Barilla pasta! No one can tell the difference! Thank you for sharing this! We love crockpot lasagna, but finding gluten-free lasagna noodles that are edible is a challenge!
Allison Treadwell says
So happy you found it! We love this and it makes a ton so we freeze the leftover and the gluten free pasta even reheats well. Barilla gluten free lasagna noodles are what I use in my Crock Pot lasagna and it’s delicious!
Brittany says
Can this be cooked longer on low?
Allison Treadwell says
Hi Brittany- I have not cooked it on low but other people have told me it turned out great still on low. Just make sure to cover all the noodles in the red sauce so they cook evenly! Let me know if you try it and how it turns out.
Chridtinr says
Do I have to use gluten-free pasta?
Allison Treadwell says
Nope! You can use any pasta. Just make sure not to cook it before 🙂
Vivien says
Hello! This might sound dumb, but the recipe says 48 oz marinara/2 jars… is that two 48oz jars or two 24oz jars 🤔 is the pasta put in uncooked or cooked? 🤔☺️ TIA
Allison Treadwell says
Hi Vivien! That is not dumb at all. It is actually 2 (24oz) jars of the marinara to make a total of 48oz. I will try to make that clear in the directions. It is uncooked pasta and makes sure to get sauce over all the noodles so they cook the same. Let me know what you think!
Chloe says
Yup don’t recommend not cooking the noodles. 3.5 hours in and my noodles still aren’t cooked all the way on high.
Allison Treadwell says
Hi Chole! I’m so sorry to hear the noodles didn’t cook all the way. The only issue I have run into is if you don’t use enough sauce to cover them because they cook unevenly. Hopefully, it ended up still being delicious…