easy baked pasta recipe
Baked PastaHere’s an easy Baked Pasta recipe with ground turkey and plenty of cheese.
INGREDIENTS
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
12 ounces ground turkey (90% lean)
4 cups cooked whole wheat pasta shells (see Recipe Notes below)
2? cups marinara sauce (bottled or homemade)
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1? cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese, divided
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Spray a 3-quart casserole dish with nonstick spray.
In a large pan, heat the oil over medium-heat and add onion, garlic and red pepper flakes. Saute until onions have softened, about 4 minutes. Crumble in the ground turkey and cook until the turkey is browned, about 5 minutes. Stir in the pasta, marinara sauce, parsley and 1 cup of the cheese. Spoon the pasta mixture into the prepared dish. Sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup of cheese on top and the Parmesan cheese too.
Bake until cheese is melted and bubbly, about 20 minutes.
NOTES
I’m not always such a fan of whole wheat pasta, but I really like the Delallo Foods brand- we used their whole wheat shells for this recipe. Delallo is in select stores, but you can always find it at Whole Foods Market.
4 cups of cooked pasta equates to about 2 cups dried.
Use a good cheese for this recipe- I used a very flavorful Monterey Jack. Sometimes Jack can be quite mild. You can also use Swiss, Provolone or Mozzarella (or a blend!)