Bacon Cheeseburger Pasta

I saw this wonderful recipe posted on my bloggy pal Lara's website.  She has such great, easy family recipes that always catch my eye.  When she described this one as pasta that tasted like a hamburger, I knew I had to try it.  Her words didn't disappoint me either. 


I did tweak her recipe to add in some bacon, a liquid-based steak seasoning and a can of tomato sauce to give it a saucey texture.  The end result was amazing!  My husband loved this one and didn't even mind leftovers for two days!  I think you'll enjoy it as well.  It was a quick, simple recipe that I threw together after I came home from work.  Everything was ready in less than an hour.




Bacon Cheeseburger Pasta

Adapted from Recipe Shoebox

(Serves 6)

1 box (12-ounces) of whole wheat pasta - I used penne
1 lb. ground turky meat
1 onion, diced
1 can (14-1/2-oz.) diced tomatoes
1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce
1/2 cup of shredded or pureed carrots (optional)
2 Tbsp. mustard
3 Tbsp. ketchup
3 Tbsp. dill pickle relish
1 Tbsp. steak sauce (I used A-1)
1/4 tsp. salt or Cajun seasoning
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese, reduced fat
1/2 cup of chopped green onions
1/3 cup of bacon bits

Cook your whole wheat pasta according to package directions on the stove.  Grease a large skillet generously with cooking spray.  Brown beef with chopped onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain.  Stir in the diced tomatoes, the tomato sauce, pureed (or shredded) carrots, mustard, ketchup, relish, steak sauce, and salt/seasoning.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for about seven minutes. 


Add in your bacon bits and the chopped green onions.  Cook for another five minutes.  Stir in the drained pasta.  Cook for about 3 minutes more. Top with the cheddar cheese.  Remove from heat; stir and serve.


We topped ours with some additional cheese and served them with green beans.

 


Enjoy!   This is a good one!  Thanks again Lara! 

How often do you cook pasta dishes?  I realize that we have some kind of noodle meal at least once a week.  I love it!  We buy the whole grain or whole wheat pasta.  It's so easy to add vegetables to your pasta and sneak in a few purees too.  Tomato sauce can easily hide things like carrots, cauliflower and more.  Think beyond just the meat and red sauce the next time you make pasta dishes.  And if you have any good ones you make, please share them here too! 

Chicken and Broccoli Pasta Bake

I wish I had a catchier name to call this recipe but my mind is drawing a blank.  Trust me, it tastes much better than it sounds and even looks!  My family and I aren't normally broccoli lovers.  Usually when I eat broccoli, it's in small pieces.  I've either steamed it and chopped it into bits or pureed it so it's almost liquified. 


Something about eating little trees with that strong odor just puts me off!  But I'm no fool.  I know how great it is for you and the calcium in it alone should cause us women to eat it daily.  So here's one way I've found to eat it and enjoy it, through this recipe.   Best of all, you probably have nearly all these ingredients on hand and you can throw this dish together in a short amount of time too! 





Chicken and Broccoli Pasta Bake
(Serves 5-6)

3 cups of whole wheat pasta (I used a combo of rotini and bow-tie that I had on hand)
1 cup of pre-cooked, diced chicken (I often use leftover BBQ chicken or cut up an extra breast from another recipe I'm making)
1 can of cream of mushroom soup, fat free
4 oz of cream cheese, reduced fat
1/2 cup of milk, reduced fat
1 cup of pureed or finely chopped broccoli
1 and 1/4 cups of shredded cheese, reduced fat, any variety
1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese, grated
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Generously grease a 2 qt (11x7 inch) baking pan with cooking spray.  Set it aside.  Cook your pasta according to the package directions. Drain when done.

Meanwhile, spray the cooking oil in a skillet and sautee your chicken and broccoli for about five minutes.  Add in the cream of mushroom soup, cream cheese and milk.  Simmer until the cream cheese has melted and all liquids are incorporated, about ten minutes.  Add in the onion and garlic powder with a dash of salt and pepper too.  Stir several times.  Remove from heat then add in the 1 cup shredded cheese and all of Parmesan cheese.  Set aside.

Place the drained, cooked pasta at the bottom of the greased 2 qt baking pan.  Pour the chicken-broccoli and mushroom-cheese sauce over the pasta.  It will look like this:



Now sprinkle the pasta sauce with the remaining 1/4 cup of shredded cheese, like this:




Bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.  Let it cool for about five minutes before cutting and serving.  Enjoy! 

And remember, we're not big broccoli fans in my family but we really enjoyed this recipe!  Sometimes it's good to branch out, even when it's broccoli bunches you're reaching out too!  Often the meal may surprise you for the better :-)  Plus I'll be reaching for a cookie or bite of ice cream after I'm done with this meal anyway! 

Mexican Mac 'N' Cheese

This was a simple, delicious recipe I threw together.  It was first inspired by Lara at Recipe Shoebox and her Nacho Mama Mac N Cheese.  I decided, however, to adapt her method, leaving out the corn and tortilla chips for some better-for-you vegetables instead.  I snuck in pureed cauliflower and carrots.  They blended right in with the sauce and seasonings.  Your kids won't even know they are there!  But hopefully they'll gain the vitamin C, fiber and possible cancer-fighting substances that go along with eating those veggies. 


As I was taking photos of this dish, it reminded me of Hamburger Helper.  Hahahah!  Anyone ever cook with that stuff?  Ugh! It makes me want to throw up a little in my mouth just thinking about it now.  However as a teenager and a new wife, I didn't mind using the packaged noodles and seasonings.  Now it's so easy to make my own sauces and use whole grain noodles.  I can make it more beneficial and healthier for my family and me. 


So enjoy this recipe!  And thanks to Lara at Recipe Shoebox for giving me the initial inspiration for this meal too! 





Mexican Mac 'N' Cheese

(Serves 6 to 8)

3 cups of spiral whole grain or whole wheat pasta (I used whole grain rotini)
1 pound of lean ground turkey (or other beef, chicken)
2 sweet peppers (I used one red and one orange pepper)
1/2 cup of cauliflower puree
1/2 cup of carrot puree (or use finely shredded carrots)
1/4 cup of light butter
1/4 cup of whole wheat flour
1 envelope of taco seasoning, mild or original flavor
2 cups of fat-free evaporated milk
2 cups of reduced fat (2%) shredded Mexican cheese


Spray a skillet with cooking spray.  Place the ground turkey and peppers in skillet and cook until brown, cooking on medium heat.  Drain or blot away any excess grease.  While preparing the meat, boil the noodles in a separate pan.  Cook noodles according to package directions.  Drain the noodles and set aside.   Once the meat is brown, add in the taco seasoning mix, butter, flour, carrot and cauliflower purees.  Simmer mixture over medium heat.  Begin adding the evaporated milk and bring to a boil.  Stir and simmer for about three minutes, until it begins forming a thickened base or sauce.  Remove the pan from heat.  Add in the reduced fat shredded cheese and drained noodles.  Stir until cheese is melted and noodles have been coated with the meat and veggies.   Serve right away. 


Freeze any leftovers in plastic storage bags or containers.  Reheat in microwave or on stove in a sauce pan.  Add about 1/4 cup of milk or water to thin the mac 'n' cheese while reheating.    


I love how the veggies were easily hidden in this one and it helped stretch the meal and make it more filling!  Enjoy it!  We sure did.







Do you have a different variation for a mac 'n' cheese recipe?  Have you ever sneaked vegetables inside of it? 

Sausage, Mushroom and Pumpkin Pasta

I stocked up on canned pumpkin and found myself wondering what I could cook with them besides desserts and breads.   On Saturday I found this sausage and pumpkin recipe in my Taste of Home Healthy Cooking magazine.  Since I wanted to use 2 cups (a whole can) of canned pumpkin, I decided to modify and double the recipe I discovered with a few changes and additives. 

Here is the tasty end result:






Sausage, Mushroom and Pumpkin Pasta
(Serves 10 to 12)

3 cups of pasta (I used elbow macaroni, whole wheat)
1 lb (14 oz) of pre-cooked turkey sausage, chopped into small pieces
2 cups of chicken broth
2 cans (10 oz) of cream of mushroom soup, fat free
1 can (15 oz) of pumpkin
1 cup of Parmesan cheese
1 large red onion
1/2 cup of cooking white wine
1/2 cup of reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese
4 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tsp oregano
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp Cajun seasoning
1/2 tsp garlic powder
dashes of salt and pepper, to taste


Cook your pasta according to package directions.  While pasta is cooking, generously grease a large skillet with cooking spray.  Cook sausage onion, garlic and mushroom soup for about ten minutes.  Transfer the contents into a large pot that has been greased at the bottom.  (You'll need more room than a skillet for the next several steps).  

In the large pot, add in the chicken broth, white wine, canned pumpkin, Parmesan cheese, oregano, onion powder, Cajun seasoning, garlic powder, and a dash of salt and pepper.

Simmer for 15 to 20 minutes or until the mixture forms a sauce texture that looks like this:





Isn't this a beautiful color pasta sauce?  The orange from the pumpkin gives it a fun, festive fall feel.  (Say that three times in a row without fail, I dare you!) 

Drain your cooked pasta.  Then add it to the sausage-mushroom-pumpkin saunce once it looks similar to the above photo.   Mix the pasta well and add the 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese.






Serve in pasta bowls and enjoy. We ate ours with a side of green beans and garlic bread.  Yummy! 

This recipe makes A LOT!  You may want to consider cutting it in half or just freeze 2/3 of it like I did! 

To reheat, defrost in fridge overnight or in microwave.  Add additional chicken broth, water and cheeses if needed.


(Cook's note: This recipe has more of a mushroom and garlic flavor than a pumpkin taste.  I find the pumpkin to very subtle, more as an undertone.  You can however use less or more of any of the above ingredients to make it work for your family.  I bet your kids will try it, simply because it looks like macaroni and cheese.  It has a VERY different flavor though and much less fat!)

(Fun fact:  Every year I forget whether pumpkin is considered to be a fruit or a vegetable.  I usually think of it as fruit because of it's sweet nature.   However, many other people call it a vegetable because it's a member of the squash family.  Web resources say the following: The pumpkin is a member of the squash family, and, though it is treated like a vegetable, it is technically a fruit. The reason a pumpkin is a fruit is because it grows on a vine and contains seeds.)