Like My Grandmother Used to Make: Baked Ziti
In this edition of Like My Grandmother Used to Make, writer Benjamin Kritikos shares a classic Italian-American dish, and a favourite from his upbringing in New York. Exploring his heritage through the dish, Benjamin’s baked ziti recipe is tale of a comfort, connection and kind gestures.
Benjamin’s baked ziti
Words and photos by Benjamin Kritikos
Everyone understands the concept of folk music: songs made and played with local variations by ordinary people – passed on from one person to another, often for no other reason than the pleasure of singing them. But we don’t tend to think of food when the word ‘folk’ pops up, which is kind of ironic, considering that cooking is a more common cultural practice for most people than singing or playing an instrument.
The women who raised me – my grandmother, my mother, my aunts – were American women. Their Italian heritage wasn’t expressed through language or song, but in the New York suburbs where I grew up, there was no doubt about what it meant to be Italian-American. It meant that you knew how to make marinara sauce; that you ate Italian bread from Arthur Avenue in the Bronx; that you walked to the side of an arterial road with no sidewalk to pick wild greens: dandelion, mustard, ramsons.
My grandmother, who looked after me while my mom drove a taxi, and who made sure I was fed, was an ordinary suburban housewife in every other respect. The food she cooked was not Italian food – it was Italian-American food. So, like any Italian-American household, you’d always find a baked ziti in the freezer – a classic dish you wouldn’t find anywhere in Italy.
Ziti is a tube-shaped pasta – like rigatoni but without ridges. You don’t really find it in the UK. Over here, Italian cooking is often the domain of TV chefs and their branded products. But baked ziti isn’t something you buy; it’s something you make. If your neighbour’s elderly parent dies, you take them a baked ziti for the freezer. As a kid playing with friends, if I found myself at the house as late as dinnertime, out came my buddy’s mom’s baked ziti.
My friends just had a baby. I know from experience that they’ll appreciate any relief from chores like cooking. Guess what I’ve made for them?
Ingredients
3 tins good plum tomatoes
3-10 cloves of garlic, sliced thinly
100ml extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp dried oregano
Salt & freshly-ground pepper to taste
250g ziti or rigatoni or another bulky pasta that bakes well
Pot of ricotta
Whole bunch of basil
1-2 cups grated parmesan
1-2 cups breadcrumbs
Pepper and drizzle of extra virgin olive oil for the top
Method
1. Fry the sliced garlic in a little bit in the oil, then tip in the tins of tomatoes and add the oregano. Simmer on a low-medium heat, stirring constantly, until the tomatoes have broken down – about 45 mins, or until it’s one quarter reduced.
2. Boil pasta in salted water until just before it’s al dente – when it still has bite. Mix with the sauce.
3. Tip out half into a big baking dish. Smooth into a flat layer then break up the ricotta in a layer on top of that, then a layer of hand-shredded basil. Tip the rest of the pasta on top and smooth it out. Cover with a layer of parmesan, then cover that with breadcrumbs. Drizzle some olive oil over the top and grate a little pepper on it.
4. You can either cover and freeze it now, or pop it in the oven at 200 degrees celsius until the top is golden and crispy – about 30-45 mins.
Tips
• Your sauce is only as good as your tomatoes and olive oil, so be discerning.
• Make your own breadcrumbs by grating or food processing stale bread.
• Swap ricotta for feta, or cover the top with mozzarella five to ten mins before it’s done baking.