• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
• Gently spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray. Set it aside.
• Boil a pot of water and cook the ziti pasta according to the package. Al dente is best because it will continue to bake in the oven.

  Reserve ¼ cup of pasta water for the sauce. Drain remaining water, drizzle pasta with olive oil and set it aside.
• Next, in a large saucepan add the butter, olive oil, diced shallots, and minced garlic. Cook until lightly browned.
• Next, you’ll add the cherry tomatoes. Once they begin to blister add ¼ cup of pasta water, oregano, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes. Stir well.
• Then, add 1 can of pomodoro tomatoes with juice, along with ¼ cup red wine. Using a wooden spoon, break down the whole tomatoes in the sauce.
• Lastly, add about 2 tablespoons torn or chopped fresh basil. Stir it into the sauce.
• Let everything simmer over low heat for 15-20 minutes.
• While the sauce is simmering, prepare the ricotta cheese.
• In a small mixing bowl, add the ricotta cheese, parmesan, shredded mozzarella, egg, salt, oregano, dried parsley, onion powder, garlic powder and stir until well combined.

Assemble the dish:

• Add the cooked ziti pasta to the pomodoro sauce. Toss together until the ziti is well coated in the sauce.
• Pour the sauce and pasta into the prepared oven safe 9x13 baking dish.
• Top with dollops of the ricotta cheese topping. Sprinkle with some extra shredded mozzarella. Cover with foil and bake for 20-25 minutes. Remove the foil and broil for an additional 2-3 minutes or until the cheese gets lightly browned and bubbly.
• Top with fresh chopped basil and cracked black pepper. Serve immediately and enjoy!