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Nothing beats a delicious bowl of cheesy baked pasta at the end of a long day. This Cottage Cheese Baked Ziti combines the flavor of your favorite comfort meal with protein-rich ingredients to make a pasta dish that’s loaded with over 40 grams of protein per serving.
If you’re a cottage cheese hater, I promise you’re still going to want to give this baked ziti with cottage cheese a try anyway! The cottage cheese is blended smoothly with ricotta cheese, mozzarella, and Parmesan, so you can’t even taste it.
The complex cheese blend adds a lot of flavor and over 10 grams of protein from the cottage cheese. When combined with lean ground turkey and protein pasta, it makes a meal that’s sure to leave you feeling satisfied without a ton of extra calories.
If you like cottage cheese pasta recipes, you will love my Cottage Cheese Alfredo and Buffalo Chicken Pasta!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Comfort Food Made Healthier: Who doesn’t love baked pasta? It’s easy to make and feels like a warm hug. This healthy baked ziti captures all the flavors you love while being better for you.
- Balanced Nutrition: This cottage cheese pasta bake is packed with the protein, fiber, and healthy fats your body needs. The key to weight loss and healthy eating is balancing your nutrition, so you need macronutrients in your meals.
- Meal Prep Friendly: This baked pasta is great for an easy dinner after a busy day, but it also works for meal prep. What’s better than having baked ziti waiting in your freezer when you need a nutritious and delicious meal?
- Lower Calorie: Traditional ziti recipes have about 1200 calories (like Olive Garden). This low-calorie ziti recipe has 500 calories and is better balanced nutritionally without sacrificing flavor.
Table of Contents
Ingredients
- Ziti Pasta: Pack in extra protein by using a protein pasta like Barilla Protein+ or Kaizen. For gluten-free pasta, use chickpea pasta because chickpeas are high in protein.
- Ground Turkey: Lean ground turkey is a great way to add protein to your meals without adding a lot of saturated fats.
- Marinara Sauce: Use your favorite jar of marinara sauce that doesn’t have added sugar.
- Cottage Cheese: There’s a reason why cottage cheese is so popular. It’s packed with protein and low in calories. You won’t even notice when it’s blended smooth and added to the sauce.
- Ricotta Cheese: The cottage cheese flavor is also hidden because it’s blended with ricotta cheese, which is more typical for a cheesy baked pasta.
- Mozzarella Cheese: Use a freshly shredded low-moisture mozzarella cheese because it melts evenly. Fresh mozzarella is not great for melting.
- Parmesan Cheese: Add a punch of flavor with shredded Parmesan cheese mixed into the cheese blend.
See the recipe card below for exact ingredient amounts, nutritional information, and detailed instructions.
Variations & Dietary Modifications
- Make It Vegetarian: Skip the ground turkey and make this baked pasta with cottage cheese and lentils or white beans instead. Beans and lentils are a great source of low-fat protein for vegetarian dishes.
- Swap the Meat: Ground chicken, lean ground beef or shrimp would be great protein sources you can swap in this low calorie ziti recipe.
- Use Dairy-Free Cheeses: If you need this dish to be dairy-free, you could technically use dairy-free cheeses. Good Culture and Lactaid make dairy-free cottage cheese, Kite Hill makes almond-based ricotta, and you can also find plant-based mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.
- Use Gluten-Free Pasta: If you need this dish to be gluten-free, swap for a gluten-free pasta you enjoy.
- Add Veggies: You can never have too many veggies, so add some vegetables to your ziti. Zucchini, peppers, spinach, and mushrooms are all great options for this pasta bake. You could also add sweet potato and eggplant, like in this ground turkey casserole.
How to Make Cottage Cheese Baked Ziti
This healthy baked ziti with cottage cheese is the perfect comfort meal when you’re craving pasta but also need something nutritionally balanced. You’ll need to precook your pasta until it’s not quite al dente and preheat your oven to 400°F.
- Step 1: Brown the Meat. Add the onions, garlic, and broth to a large skillet and heat them over medium heat until the onions soften. Then add the ground turkey to the skillet and cook until brown, breaking it up with a spatula.
- Step 2: Stir in the Sauce. Add the Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, and onion powder to the meat and let it cook for 5 minutes. Once the turkey is browned, stir in the marinara sauce and reduce it to a simmer.
- Step 3: Blend the Cheese. Add the cottage cheese and ricotta cheese to a small blender. Blend them until they are completely smooth without any clumps. Then fold in ¾ cup of the shredded mozzarella and Parmesan cheese by hand.
- Step 4: Add the Pasta. Stir the undercooked pasta into the meat sauce.
- Step 5: Layer the Pasta and Cheese. Add half of the pasta mixture to a 9 x 13” baking dish, then top it with the cheese mixture.
- Step 6: Add Another Layer of Pasta. Top the cheese mixture layer with another layer of the pasta mixture.
- Step 7: Top with Cheese. Sprinkle the remaining ¾ cup of mozzarella cheese over the top of the pasta.
- Step 8: Bake and Garnish. Bake the dish at 400°F for 25 minutes until the top is golden brown and the edges bubble. Sprinkle fresh basil over the top before serving.
Expert Tips
- Sauté Meat and Onion in Broth: Skip the oil and saute your garlic, onions, and turkey in a low-sodium broth instead. Using broth instead of oil is a low-calorie alternative that adds more flavor to the meat and veggies.
- Blend the Cheese Smooth: The key to hiding cottage cheese in dishes is to blend it until it is completely smooth without any clumps.
- Undercook the Pasta: It’s very easy to overcook protein or chickpea pasta, so it’s important to undercook the pasta before baking it. Stop cooking the pasta 2-3 minutes before the recommended cook time, so it’s less cooked than al dente.
- Let It Rest: After you take the baked ziti out of the oven, it’s important to let it sit at room temperature to cool for at least 5 minutes. This also gives the pasta time to absorb the excess moisture, so it’s easy to slice into.
Storage Directions
- Storing: Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. You can also freeze the leftovers as a whole or in individual portions for 3 months.
- Reheating: Reheat single servings in the microwave in 60-second increments with an extra splash of sauce to keep them moist. To reheat a larger amount, you can reheat it in a baking dish in a 350°F oven for 15-20 minutes, or until heated through. If frozen, thaw it in the refrigerator overnight before reheating.
Serving Suggestions
Who doesn’t love a pasta night? This baked ziti recipe with cottage cheese is going to become a new favorite in your meal rotation. It’s great for families with kids, dinner parties, or meal prepping for the week.
The ingredients are full of protein and fiber while also being low in saturated fat and calories. You can enjoy it on its own or serve it with a side salad, bread, or veggies!
- Pasta and salad are the perfect pairing! This healthy Olive Garden salad is my favorite side dish or appetizer for any pasta dinner.
- Serve your baked ziti with this low-carb, high-protein cauliflower bread to soak up all of the extra sauce.
- If you need a veggie to go with your dinner, roasted broccoli goes so well with cheesy pasta.
Cottage Cheese Baked Ziti Recipe FAQs
No, you genuinely can’t taste it in this dish. Not only is it blended with ricotta cheese, but mozzarella and Parmesan cheese are also mixed into the cheese sauce and covered in marinara. It’s one of the best ways to sneak cottage cheese into a meal.
The most likely reason for mushy pasta is overcooking. It’s important to undercook the pasta before mixing it into the sauce and baking it. The pasta will finish cooking as the ziti bakes.
Your cottage cheese baked ziti is soupy in the middle because it hasn’t had time to set after baking. The texture may look runny when you pull it from the oven. Let the ziti rest for at least 10–15 minutes before serving so the pasta and meat can absorb that excess moisture and the layers can firm up, giving you a thicker, more cohesive texture.
Yes, you can absolutely make it ahead of time to either refrigerate overnight or freeze for later. The key is how you prep and store it so the texture stays creamy instead of watery. If you’re making it the night before, assemble the casserole fully, but don’t bake it yet. Let the pasta cool slightly before layering so it doesn’t create excess steam, then cover the dish tightly with foil and refrigerate. When ready to bake, take it out of the fridge while the oven preheats, then bake as directed, adding an extra 5–10 minutes since it’s starting cold. For freezing, assemble the ziti in a freezer-safe dish without baking it. Wrap it tightly with plastic wrap and foil to prevent freezer burn. Freeze for up to 2–3 months. When you’re ready to use it, thaw it overnight in the refrigerator, then bake as usual.
More Delicious Healthy Comfort Food Recipes
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Cottage Cheese Baked Ziti
Ingredients
- 16 oz. Ziti, like Barilla Protein+ or Kaizen
- ¼ cup Low-Sodium Chicken Broth, or vegetable
- 1 lb. Ground Turkey
- 3 tbsp Garlic, minced
- ½ cup White Onion, diced
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- 2 ½ cups Marinara Sauce
- ½ tsp Italian Seasoning
- ½ tsp Onion Powder
- ½ cup Low Fat Cottage Cheese
- ½ cup Low Fat Ricotta Cheese
- 1 cup Low-Moisture Mozzarella, divided into ¾ cups
- ½ cup Parmesan, shredded or grated
- Fresh Basil for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400° F.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the pasta according to pasta a few minutes less than the instructions as it will continue cooking in the oven.
- In a large, deep skillet add the broth, garlic and onion and bring to a medium heat. Once the onions soften, add the ground turkey to the skillet breaking it up with a spatula.
- Add the salt, pepper, Italian seasoning and onion powder. Cook 5 minutes or until the meat is browned. Reduce the heat to low then add the marinara sauce and water. Simmer while you prepare the cheese.
- Blend the cottage cheese and ricotta together in a small blender or with a hand mixer. Then fold in 3/4 cup of the mozzarella and all the Parmesan by hand.
- Add the pasta to the skillet and stir to combine.
- Then add half the pasta and meat mixture to a 9-inch by 13-inch casserole dish. Add the cheese layer and smooth into an even layer. Top with the remaining pasta and meat mixture and add the 3/4 cup of mozzarella evenly on top.
- Bake in the oven for 25 minutes until golden brown then remove, garnish with fresh basil leaves and serve.
Notes
- Use broth to saute the onions, garlic, and ground turkey instead of oil to reduce the calories in the dish and to amplify the flavor.
- Blend the cottage cheese completely smooth and lump-free to help disguise the flavor in the pasta.
- Stop cooking the pasta a few minutes before it cooks through
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This low calorie baked ziti doesn’t sacrifice flavor with it’s fewer calories. It’s cheesy, comforting and better for you. Enjoy!