Turkey, Veggies and Cheese ... OH MY!

This is one of those spur-of-the-moment meals I threw together with whatever I could find in the fridge.  It ended up being chock-full of veggies along with ground turkey, cottage cheese, eggs (PROTEIN!) and whole wheat egg noodles.  I told the kids it was "kinda like lasagna" and they bought it.  The recipe is pretty simple and you can substitute whatever veggies you have on hand.  We actually got three dinners out of just one pan. 

Pasta Bake

• 1 lb. ground turkey (may substitute gr.beef, sausage or chicken)
• 5 cups (approx) chopped veggies (I used bell pepper, zucchini, mushrooms, cauliflower, onion and garlic)
• 1 16oz. can petite diced tomatoes (italian-style adds extra flavor)
• 1 jar spaghetti sauce (Ragu, Prego, Classico ... whatever!)

** Brown the ground turkey with chopped onion and garlic, drain fat.  Add remaining chopped veggies, simmer 2-3 minutes. Add canned tomatoes and spaghetti sauce.  Simmer another 5 minutes. (Note: when I made this recipe I had some pre-browned ground turkey I had cooked a few days earlier, so I sauteed the vegetables first in a little olive oil THEN added the browned meat. )

Saute chopped veggies ...



Add canned tomatoes and ground beef (see note above) ...



Add jarred spaghetti sauce, simmer then set aside.

• 2 c. cottage cheese (may sub ricotta cheese for all or part)
• 1 c. shredded mozzerella cheese
• 1 c. chopped fresh spinach
• 1/4 c. chopped fresh spinach
• 1 egg + 1 egg white, beaten
• salt and pepper

**Combine above ingredients in bowl and mix until combined

Cheese mixture

• 4 c. dry pasta (I used whole wheat egg noodles)

** Spray 9X13 pan with cooking spray.  Start with a single layer of dry pasta in the bottom of the pan.  Next top with meat/veggie sauce.  Follow with a layer of the cheese mixture.  Repeat layers: pasta, sauce and cheese mixture.  I topped the final layer with a handful of shredded colby jack cheese. 

First layer of pasta ...

Top with a layer of sauce ...

My favorite layer, the cheese layer, comes next ...

Repeat layers again and top with a handful of cheese

**Cover with foil.  Bake at 425 degrees for 50 minutes.  (I put a cookie sheet under the baking sheet as my pan was completely full and did bubble over a bit.)  Let sit for 5 minutes before slicing.  We served ours in squares, lasagna-style.  Great with a green salad.

Even better the next day! 

  

Cheesy yummy goodness ... "semi-healthier" comfort food!