Get the real deal sausage. I got it at AJ's, if you're out west you can find it there. Remove the casings and crumble... Crumbled. Add two teaspoons of olive oil, and proceed to browning...

Now for the sauce ingredients. Use real Italian San Marzano tomatoes - seriously, this makes all the difference in the world. Doesn't have to be grown in Italy either.

Puree it (not too much).

Cut your onion.

Gather your other fresh spices - also, go fresh. Pictured here: basil, thyme, garlic.

Judo chop!

Add onions and garlic to now-browned sausage. Cook for a few more minutes until transparent.

Add your tomato puree.

Add your chopped spices. Stir this up and let it simmer on low for 10 minutes.

Time to get the pasta boiling.

I'm not one of those snobs that says you have to have boiling water first... but make sure your pasta doesn't stick together while cooking. Add some olive oil to aid in this process.

Using real deal cheeses is a must. Grate your own parmesan, and get FRESH mozarella. You can tell the difference. It's wet and sweet like ricotta.

Cut the mozarella half of it into 1/2 inch cubes, the other half in as thin of slices as you can manage.

Add a can of tomato paste to your sauce to thicken it up and give it a lively red color and more intense flavor.

mmm...

Pasta should be "al dente" - tender, but firm. Avoid soggy, you still have to bake it some. And wash your pasta!

Add the pasta, your sauce, the mozzarella and half the parmesan in a baking dish. Add some salt and pepper to taste. Add a pinch of the pepper flakes.

Mix it all up...

Top with the sliced mozzarella and the remainder of the parmesan. Bake this bad boy for about 30 minutes until golden...

All Done!

Now that you have learned how to make baked ziti, please be sure to view these other pasta recipes.