Baked Ziti!

Just wanted to share the recipe for the baked ziti I made tonight. I have to borrow Lets Dish's photo because we put a gaping hole in our casserole of baked ziti before I could snap a picture. Too hungry. This makes A LOT, so plan to eat it for lunch leftovers for at least one day, but maybe two. Cottage cheese in baked ziti? Trust me, it's good.

Ingredients
1 (16 oz.) container cottage cheese
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups grated Parmesan cheese
1 pound ziti or other short, tubular pasta
2 tablespoons olive oil
5 medium garlic cloves , minced
1 (28 oz.) can tomato sauce
1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon sugar
3/4 teaspoon cornstarch
1 cup heavy cream
8 ounces mozzarella cheese, cut into 1/4-inch pieces (about 1 1/2 cups)
Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk cottage cheese, eggs, and 1 cup Parmesan together in medium bowl; set aside. Prepare pasta according to package directions, cooking only until pasta begins to soften but is not yet cooked through, about 5 to 7 minutes. Drain pasta and leave in colander.

Meanwhile, heat oil and garlic in a large skillet over medium heat until garlic is fragrant but not brown, about 2 minutes. Stir in tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, oregano and basil.  Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Simmer until thickened, about 10 minutes.  In a medium saucepan, whisk cornstarch into heavy cream. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook until thickened, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove pot from heat and add cottage cheese to thickened cream.  Stir cottage cheese/cream mixture into tomato mixture and mix well.  Add half of the cubed mozzarella and the pasta and stir until pasta is thoroughly coated with sauce.

Transfer pasta mixture to a 9x13 inch baking dish. Sprinkle remaining cubed mozzarella and remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese. Cover baking dish tightly with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and continue to cook until cheese is bubbling and beginning to brown, about 30 minutes longer. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.