CHEESY TURKEY BAKED PASTA

CHEESY TURKEY BAKED PASTA

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 3/4 pound ground turkey (10% fat)
• 4 cups cooked whole wheat pasta shells (see *Tips below)
• 2 1/2 cups marinara sauce (bottled or homemade)
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1 1/2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese (divided)
• 1/4 cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese

• DIRECTIONS:

  1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Spray a 3-quart casserole dish with nonstick spray.
  2. 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.
  3. Bake until cheese is melted and bubbly, about 20 minutes.

  TIPS:

  • 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!)

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