Best Baked Ziti EVER

Once in a while (and sadly, not as often as I'd like) I stumble across a fabulous recipe that I want to share with my friends and family. This happened yesterday. I spotted a yummy sounding baked ziti recipe in an old issue of Cook's Illustrated magazine and because I had a hankering for comfort food, decided to make it. The final product was truly one of the best pasta casserole dishes I have EVER had the pleasure of eating. It was warm, creamy, cheesy, and flavorful. Even K, who typically is not a fan of tomato-based sauces (seriously. what is wrong with him?!) liked it. As for the kids, M actually asked if she could have it for lunch today...a sure sign of a hit.

Couple things and then the recipe:
1) Given this is from Cook's Illustrated, you'll want to follow the recipe pretty much to the letter. Cook's Illustrated does a fabulous job of prepping recipes multiple times in their test kitchens to figure out the best ingredients and best techniques to achieve the very best meals. So things that might seem silly or optional (dicing the mozzarella -- why not just buy preshredded?) are typically there for a reason.
2) This took me about 30 minutes to prep and then I popped it in the fridge to cook later that day. I would not say this is a "fast" recipe...but it's not super lengthy or time consuming. However, it does require about an hour of cooking time...so you will want to factor that into your plans.

Serves 8 to 10.

Ingredients
1 pound whole milk cottage cheese or 1 percent cottage cheese (see note)
2 large eggs , lightly beaten
3 ounces grated Parmesan cheese (about 1 1/2 cups)
Table salt
1 pound ziti or other short, tubular pasta
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
5 medium garlic cloves , minced or pressed through garlic press (about 5 teaspoons)
1 (28-ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves
1 teaspoon sugar
Ground black pepper
3/4 teaspoon cornstarch
1 cup heavy cream (see note)
8 ounces low-moisture whole-milk mozzarella cheese , cut into 1/4-inch pieces (about 1 1/2 cups) (see note)

Instructions
1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk cottage cheese, eggs, and 1 cup Parmesan together in medium bowl; set aside. Bring 4 quarts of water to boil in large Dutch oven over high heat. Stir in 1 tablespoon salt and pasta; cook, stirring occasionally, until pasta begins to soften but is not yet cooked through, 5 to 7 minutes. Drain pasta and leave in colander (do not wash Dutch oven).
2. Meanwhile, heat oil and garlic in 12-inch skillet over medium heat until garlic is fragrant but not brown, about 2 minutes. Stir in tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and oregano; simmer until thickened, about 10 minutes. Off heat, stir in ½ cup basil and sugar, then season with salt and pepper.
3. Stir cornstarch into heavy cream in small bowl; transfer mixture to now-empty Dutch oven set over medium heat. Bring to simmer and cook until thickened, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove pot from heat and add cottage cheese mixture, 1 cup tomato sauce, and ¾ cup mozzarella, then stir to combine. Add pasta and stir to coat thoroughly with sauce.
4. Transfer pasta mixture to 13- by 9-inch baking dish and spread remaining tomato sauce evenly over pasta. Sprinkle remaining ¾ cup mozzarella and remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan over top. Cover baking dish tightly with foil and bake for 30 minutes.
5. Remove foil and continue to cook until cheese is bubbling and beginning to brown, about 30 minutes longer. Cool for 20 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons basil and serve.