Looking for a hearty and filling meatless meal that’s veggie-packed and delicious? This Loaded Meatless Baked Ziti is a cheesy, warm, comfort food dish that is sure to satisfy the whole family!
Packed with delicious sauteed vegetables, flavorful tomato-based sauce, and creamy ricotta and then topped with a thick layer of gooey, melty cheese, this meatless baked pasta dish recipe is the key to a wholesome dinner.
Let me tell you, between this and my Easy Cheesy Pasta Bake, I’ve got cheesy carbs with red sauce covered! They’re the only two recipes you need for a pasta-based comfort meal.
Plus, as a mom balancing family life and a passion for flavorful food, I sincerely love a dish that feeds a lot (and often yields leftovers), is easy to make, and comes together in less than an hour.
This is also one of my go-to clean-out-the-fridge meals, as truly any and every vegetable and green works in this recipe!
Meatless Baked Ziti Ingredient Highlights
I love mushrooms but if you’re not a fan, you can easily sub in another vegetable like peppers, eggplant, or even fresh tomatoes. You can also opt to leave them out altogether.
I use zucchini but yellow squash, butternut squash, or summer squash work, too. Similarly, I use spinach, but you can switch up your greens of choice.
Though this recipe was created with ziti in mind, it totally works with any short pasta! Any seasoned and jarred tomato-based sauce will work here, too.
Eggs in Baked Ziti
Often, recipes for baked ziti and lasagna call for an egg to be mixed into the ricotta cheese to help bind the cheese together and avoid a runny dish.
However, if you pre-cook your veggies to reduce their water content, the egg is unnecessary. You can avoid a runny pasta dish by releasing the liquids from the veggies before you put your dish in the oven.
Meatless Baked Ziti Tips and Tricks
How to Make Vegetarian Baked Ziti
Cook your ziti al dente according to the directions on the box. Make sure to not overcook the pasta. If anything, cook it for one less minute than you typically do, to leave some room for it to cook a little bit more in the oven.
Meanwhile, get going on your sauce. The first step to making your delicious, veggie-packed sauce is to prep your zucchini, mushrooms, onion, and garlic. We will keep the spinach whole.
Clean your zucchini and dice it into small chunks, roughly equal in size. I like to keep my zucchini chunks about ½ inch wide—the smaller the better.
Peel and mince your garlic, peel and dice your onions, and slice your mushrooms. For detailed instructions on how to dice your onions and slice your mushrooms, check out these directions for caramelized onions and mushrooms.
Then, add the veggies to a large saucepan or pot with the olive oil, salt, and pepper. Cook for about 10-15 minutes to release the excess juice from the vegetables.
The less liquid, the better so you have a nice thick sauce for your baked ziti. This particular baked ziti recipe does not include an egg, because this process of releasing the liquid first makes it unnecessary.
We also want to release any excess liquid from the sauce. Once you’ve cooked down your veggies, add your marinara or spaghetti sauce to them, cooking for another couple of minutes.
Make sure to stir frequently to avoid sauce splatter and help release the steam.
Once your sauce starts to thicken, you can remove it from the heat. Add your ricotta and stir to combine. You should now have a thick, cheesy, vegetable-packed sauce for your meatless baked ziti.
Add the cooked and drained pasta to the sauce and stir, ensuring that the noodles are evenly coated. I find it much easier to stir the pasta in the sauce in the saucepan rather than trying to stir them together in the casserole dish.
Once your ziti is coated in sauce, transfer it to a large 9 x 13-inch casserole dish. Use a spatula or wooden spoon to spread out the pasta so that it is evenly distributed throughout your dish.
Use the shredded cheese blend to form a thick top layer of cheese on your casserole. This will form a gooey golden brown exterior that is arguably the best part of this dish.
But the cheesy top layer also serves a second purpose. As the cheese melts, it forms a solid top layer, trapping in heat and moisture, making for the best-textured baked ziti.
Bake until the edges of the cheesy top layer start to bubble and brown. This will usually take about 25-30 minutes on the top rack of the oven.
Serving Meatless Baked Ziti
This veggie-packed meatless ziti is hearty enough to be a meal all on its own, but if you’re looking for appetizers and sides to serve it up with, here are a few of my favorites:
How I Store and Reheat Leftover Baked Ziti without Meat
This meatless baked ziti is equally delicious as leftovers! This dish will last 4-5 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
The best way to reheat baked ziti is to cover it with aluminum foil and bake at 375°F for 25-30 minutes until heated thoroughly.
For a quicker fix, cover with saran wrap or a microwave-safe cover and microwave on high in 45-second intervals until hot all the way to the center.
Easy Veggie-Packed Meatless Baked Ziti
SAVE RECIPE TO COLLECTION PIN PRINT RATEIngredients
- 1 large yellow onion
- 8 ounces baby bella or white button mushrooms* (see below for suggested alternatives)
- 1 large zucchini**
- 4 cloves garlic
- 2 cups spinach or other greens
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 16 ounces ziti
- 24 ounces marinara or spaghetti sauce
- 15 ounces whole or part-skim ricotta
- 8 ounces shredded Italian blend cheese
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F and cook ziti al dente according to the directions on the box.16 ounces ziti
- Prep your vegetables by dicing the zucchini and onion, slicing the mushrooms, and mincing the garlic.1 large yellow onion, 8 ounces baby bella or white button mushrooms*, 1 large zucchini**, 4 cloves garlic
- Add the prepped veggies to a large saucepan or pot with spinach, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Cook over high heat until the liquid from the veggies releases and the onion turns translucent (10-15 minutes).2 cups spinach or other greens, 2 tablespoons olive oil, ½ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon black pepper
- Add the marinara sauce to the saucepan and continue to cook for another 2 minutes, stirring frequently, until the sauce thickens.24 ounces marinara or spaghetti sauce
- Remove from heat and stir in the ricotta.15 ounces whole or part-skim ricotta
- Add your cooked pasta to the veggie-packed sauce and stir to coat. Transfer the ziti and sauce to a 9 x 13-inch baking dish.
- Layer the shredded Italian cheese blend on top, completely covering the ziti with cheese.8 ounces shredded Italian blend cheese
- Bake for 25-30 minutes until the top layer of cheese is completely melted and starts to brown. Option to garnish with fresh basil. Enjoy!
Pro Tips
- If you’re not a fan of mushrooms you can easily sub in any other vegetable like peppers, eggplant, or even fresh tomatoes.
- You can use yellow squash, butternut squash, or summer squash in place of zucchini. Or leave it out entirely!
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