Perfect Christmas Pasta

In the December Cooking Light there is a recipe for each day in December and it has a caption about how great the dish would be after specific December chores such as trimming the tree, writing Christmas cards, shopping, etc. I wanted to make every recipe for every day, but I don't have enough mouths to feed here. This sounded like an excellent Christmas pasta dish after wrapping gifts. It doesn't have a lot of sauce and it's quite rustic, but it got 5 stars from Ben and a request to move it into the regular dinner rotation. Normally, I don't make too many recipes twice, but this one we definitely will have again soon.

Baked Pasta with Sausage, Tomatoes, and Cheese (Cooking Light)

1 (1-pound) package uncooked ziti (short tube-shaped pasta)
1 pound hot turkey Italian sausage links
1 cup chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 (14.5-ounce) cans petite-diced tomatoes, undrained
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
Cooking spray
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded fresh mozzarella cheese
1 cup (4 ounces) grated fresh Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350°.

Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain the pasta, and set aside.
Remove casings from sausage. Cook sausage, onion, and garlic in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until browned, stirring to crumble. Add the tomato paste, salt, pepper, and tomatoes, and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Combine cooked pasta, sausage mixture, and basil. Place half of the pasta mixture in a 4-quart casserole coated with cooking spray. Top with half of mozzarella and half of Parmesan. Repeat layers. Bake at 350° for 25 minutes or until bubbly.