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    Home » Main Courses

    Vegan Baked Ziti

    Published: Jul 14, 2021 · Modified: Sep 15, 2022 by Larisha Bernard · This post may contain affiliate links · 5 Comments

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    Vegan Baked Ziti is an Italian-American baked pasta dish that is easy to make, cheesy, and is great for meal prep. Try this easy vegan dinner today!

    We grew up with baked ziti. It was like the upgrade to spaghetti that we had weekly and typically on if ricotta was on sale or there was a coupon. Obviously not vegan with all the cheese, but today we’ve made a vegan baked ziti that can rival the original.

    Baked ziti is an Italian-American casserole dish made with ziti noodles. Ziti is a tubular pasta similar to penne except that it is cut straight instead of on a diagonal. Pasta is cooked until al dente (almost done but not quite) and then the other ingredients are layered in a similar style of lasagna.

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    VEGAN BAKED ZITI INGREDIENTS:

    Below are notes about the ingredients before we get into the full recipe located lower in this post on how to make these vegan baked ziti:

    • ziti noodles – you can’t make baked ziti without ziti noodles. These are tubular shaped pasta noodles that are available at every major grocery chain
    • vegan cheese – ziti uses a blend of mozzarella, ricotta, and parmesan for the ultimate combination of cheeses that are perfect for this dish
    • spaghetti sauce – we highly recommend our vegan homemade spaghetti sauce that is absolutely phenomenal.

    Substitutions/Variations

    • ziti noodles – any tubular pasta like penne will be a good sub for ziti noodles
    • vegan cheese – ricotta is the base of the dish with the noodles, but you could swap the mozzarella for cheddar if needed or do a mix
    • spaghetti sauce – use your favorite homemade sauce or store bought brand

    How to make the best vegan baked ziti?

    We highly recommend the following things:

    • Only cook your noodles to al dente. This is a few minutes short of fully cooked. Because this gets baked and the noodles continued to get cooked, you don’t want to over cook them during the boiling phase because they they will be mushy once baked
    • Take time to make the homemade spaghetti sauce – While there are some really great store brand sauces, nothing beats homemade. If you have the time, we highly recommend it.
    • Use the best vegan cheeses – there are some really gross vegan cheese brands out there. We recommend using brands that you love! We personally used for this dish – Kite Hill ricotta, Violife parmesan block, and Daiya cutting board blend vegan mozzarella. See our vegan mozzarella taste test for inspiration!

    How to make vegan baked ziti faster?

    • Using a store bought spaghetti sauce will make the recipe time go faster.
    • While this is a baked dish, you could reduce the time it gets baked until just heated through
    • It also freezes well or can be prepped 3-5 days ahead of time and reheat it

    Frequently Asked Questions for Vegan Baked Ziti:

    Can I add in other ingredients to the vegan baked ziti?

    Yes! Other ingredients that are traditionally added could be vegan ground meat or sausage, mushrooms, peppers and onions. We recommend cooking all of these prior to adding to the dish. Mix in with the spaghetti sauce first. Try making with our homemade walnut meat – swap the taco seasoning for an Italian seasoning.

    Can I make this Top 9 Free?

    Use a gluten free pasta and vegan cheese brands that are safe for your allergens. Ricotta can be make from nuts or tofu so you can use a store brand that is safe or make your own DIY version. Aldi brand vegan mozzarella is free from allergens and you can use our homemade vegan parmesan with sunflower seeds .

    How long is vegan baked ziti good for?

    We recommend eating this dish within 3-5 days. When reheating you may want to add more sauce.

    Can you freeze vegan baked ziti?

    Yes! Let cool completely and freeze in an freezer sauce container with a lid. You can do this either after it’s cooked or before it goes into the oven. Let thaw completely when ready to make.

    Can I use another type of noodle?

    Yes! Any noodles will work here but tubular shapes are best like penne or macaroni noodles!

    What other vegan pasta dishes could I make?

    • Vegan Creamy Mushroom and Asparagus Pasta
    • The Best Vegan Mac and Cheese
    • Vegan Pumpkin Pasta with Sundried Tomatoes and Spinach
    • The Best Vegan Lasagna
    • Vegan Alfredo 
    • Vegan Cheesy Hamburger Helper Skillet
    • Spinach and Walnut Pesto Pasta
    • Vegan Carbonara
    • Vegan Creamy Broccoli and Chickpea Pasta 

    And if you are looking for some cold pasta ideas, try out: 

    • Italian Vegan Pasta Salad
    • Vegan Macaroni Salad

    Pin this vegan baked ziti for later!

    Print Recipe
    5 from 7 votes

    Vegan Baked Ziti

    Vegan Baked Ziti is an Italian-American baked pasta dish that is easy to make, cheesy, and is great for meal prep. Try this easy vegan dinner today!
    Prep Time15 mins
    Cook Time30 mins
    Total Time45 mins
    Course: Main Course
    Cuisine: American, Italian
    Servings: 8 servings
    Calories: 506kcal
    Author: Larisha Bernard

    Ingredients

    • 1 lb ziti noodles, uncooked
    • 3 cups vegan mozzarella shreds
    • 15 oz vegan ricotta
    • ½ cup vegan parm, grated
    • 4 cups spaghetti sauce (Click here for an Homemade Vegan Spaghetti Sauce – need half the recipe)

    Serve with

    • vegan garlic bread

    Instructions

    • If making our homemade vegan spaghetti sauce, follow the directions to make that first.
    • Preheat oven to 350℉.
    • In a large pot, bring water to a boil and cook pasta to al dente (approximately 8-10 minutes- check package for recommendation). Drain well.
    • To the cooked pasta, add 1 cup of tomato sauce and stir to combine.
    • In a medium bowl, mix together 1 cup vegan mozzarella, all the ricotta and parmesan.
    • In a 9×13 baking dish, add a thin layer of tomato sauce.
      Then, half the pasta, ½ of the cheese mixture, half the remaining sauce. Repeat – pasta, cheese mixture, sauce. Top with the remaining 2 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese. Cover with foil.
    • Bake 25 – 30 minutes. Uncover and broil for 1-3 minute. Remove and serve with garlic bread.

    Notes

    *We encourage you to read these the FAQs in the post 
    *See post for notes about Top 8 Allergy Free variation
    *Nutritional facts are only estimates. Please utilize your own products for the most accurate information. 

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1cup | Calories: 506kcal | Carbohydrates: 64g | Protein: 15g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.2g | Sodium: 1220mg | Potassium: 490mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 530IU | Vitamin C: 9mg | Calcium: 112mg | Iron: 3mg

    Let’s see your creations!
    Share to Instagram and tag us @makeitdairyfree so we can see and share it!

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Mabel

      May 30, 2022 at 7:48 am

      5 stars
      I was craving baked ziti the other day and found this recipe. So easy to make and delicious. I’m thinking of doing it again but with home made ricotta.

      Reply
      • LarishaBernard

        May 31, 2022 at 11:23 pm

        So happy to hear that you loved the recipe

        Reply
    2. Danielle Whitmore

      December 06, 2021 at 2:01 pm

      5 stars
      So easy and so delicious!

      Reply
      • LarishaBernard

        February 10, 2022 at 4:44 pm

        So glad you enjoyed it

        Reply
    3. Maya

      October 19, 2021 at 2:47 pm

      5 stars
      Thanks for sharing this recipe. I made it recently, including the homeade sauce and it turned out pretty well for the most part. I think I cooked/reduced the sauce too much because it was too thick and I ended up using the full recipe in the ziti. Even still it could have used more sauce. So, I’ll be sure to simmer at a lower temp next time – definitely user error.

      My only real complaint is that the ricotta is SOOOO expensive. I don’t mind paying for specialty ingredients at all, but the ricotta alone was over $20 at Whole Foods. 🙁 This makes a lot, so it can easily be halved for a small family…or to save on the cost of the ricotta. 😉 If you have any tofu (or other) ricotta recipes that you swear by, that may help to bring the ingredient cost down.

      Even with the pricey ricotta, this is a nice and simple dish. Took a while to make with the sauce, but I can see it coming together very quickly if you don’t make the sauce yourself.

      Thanks again!

      Reply

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