Eat Skinny Be Skinny Dinner: Stove Top Pasta
PIN IT!Since the last 12 days of my blog have been dedicated to dessert, I thought I’d take today’s post to focus on what comes before…DINNER! As you know, I’m all about easy, healthy and delicious. My three must haves, if you will. I just don’t have the time, patience or cooking skill to spend 5 hours in the kitchen. Something would either catch fire, a bottle of wine drunk or pizza on it’s way. Also, cooking doesn’t have to take forever. Sure, there are recipes that take 2-6 hours, but that’s not the norm. Back in the day when I was “allergic” to being domestic, I veered away from cooking on the false knowledge that it would 1. take forever, 2. be extremely expensive, 3. be difficult. None of these could be further from the truth! Cook what you like to eat, not what a recipe deems is good. If you hate a certain food, don’t make it! Stick to what you know and love, and cooking will be a breeze!
This pasta recipe is one of my new favorites. See, I’m a HUGE fan of lasagna, but it can be a pain to make and assemble. And since I work 8:30-6, I’m usually starving by the time I get home. So the last thing I want to do is wait hungrily by the oven for an hour. [Actually, let’s be real. I eat snacks and by the time it’s ready, I’m full!] So to avoid these mishaps and get a little creative in the kitchen, I took all of the standard ingredients found in lasagna and made them on a stove top instead! Easy, yummy and healthy. Plus, made great leftovers for lunch!
Stove top Sausage and Spinach Pasta
What You’ll Need:
- 8 ounces whole-wheat spaghetti noodles
- 1 pound lean Italian turkey sausage
- 4 cups sliced mushrooms
- 1 pound frozen spinach, thawed
- 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- Freshly ground pepper
- 1 cup light or fat free ricotta cheese
- 1 cup low fat, part skim mozzarella cheese
How to Make It:
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and place noodles in. Cook until al-dente, or just a little hard.
- While pasta is boiling, coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium-high heat.Add garlic and onions and cook until soft.
- Add sausage. Crumble and cook until browned, about 4 minutes.
- While sausage is browning, heat up a small skillet with cooking spray. Add mushrooms. Cook until mushrooms are soft.
- Add mushrooms, tomatoes and drained spinach to the sausage mixture. Reduce heat.
- While mixture is cooking, mix ricotta cheese and mozzarella cheese into a small bowl.
- Add cheese mixture to the sausage/veggie mix. Stir well and cook for an additional 5 minutes. Pour over the noodles.
- Garnish with a tablespoon of mozzarella cheese and enjoy!
Nutritional Information per cup: 294 calories, 14 grams of fat, 26 grams of protein and 7 grams of fiber.
Claire
Tags:easy dinner, healthy dinner, pasta, ricotta cheese, sausage lasagna, sausage pasta, stove top pasta
Veronica
Veronica
Veronica
Veronica