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Southwest Pasta Bake Recipe

Southwest Pasta Bake Recipe photo by Taste of Home

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Fat-free cream cheese and reduced-fat cheddar make this creamy casserole lower in fat and calories. It's a good way to get our kids to eat spinach in "disguise". —Carol Lepak of Sheboygan, Wisconsin

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Diabetic Friendly

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Southwest Pasta Bake Recipe

Prep: 20 min. Bake: 35 min. + standing

Yield: 8 Servings

20 35 55

Ingredients

8 ounces uncooked penne pasta
1 package (8 ounces) fat-free cream cheese, cubed
1/2 cup fat-free milk
1 package (10 ounces) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 pound lean ground beef (90% lean)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 jar (16 ounces) picante sauce
1 can (8 ounces) no-salt-added tomato sauce
1 can (6 ounces) no-salt-added tomato paste
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese
1 can (2-1/4 ounces) sliced ripe olives, drained
1/4 cup sliced green onions

Directions

Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Beat in milk. Stir in spinach and oregano; set aside.
In a nonstick skillet, cook beef over medium heat until meat is no longer pink. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Drain. Stir in the picante sauce, tomato sauce, tomato paste, chili powder and cumin; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes. Drain pasta; stir into meat mixture.
In a 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish coated with cooking spray, layer half of the meat mixture and all of the spinach mixture. Top with remaining meat mixture.
Cover and bake at 350° for 30 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with cheese. Bake 5 minutes longer or until cheese is melted. Sprinkle with olives and onions. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving. Yield: 8 servings.

Nutritional Analysis: 1 serving equals 333 calories, 10 g fat (4 g saturated fat), 41 mg cholesterol, 996 mg sodium, 38 g carbohydrate, 4 g fiber, 26 g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 3 lean meat, 3 vegetable, 1-1/2 starch.

Originally published as Southwest Pasta Bake in Light & Tasty October/November 2003, p27

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Reviews for Southwest Pasta Bake

Southwest Pasta Bake

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Reviewed on Feb. 02, 2012 by lrwatkins519

I did not like this recipe at all. I don't think the cream cheese or spinach should be added at all. The flavor combinations were terrible.

Reviewed on Nov. 13, 2011 by PrincessM7

I love this recipe! I do make some changes when I make this. I use 99% fat free turkey instead of beef and low-fat cream cheese instead of fat free. It is delicious and doesn't taste low fat. I highly recommend it!

Reviewed on Oct. 11, 2011 by countrygirl_717

Loved this!! Made it just as shown except for used fat free ground turkey and Barilla whole grain Penne noodles. MMmm good!

Reviewed on Jun. 15, 2011 by PrincessM7

This is delicious! I used 98% fat free turkey (lower fat than beef) and low-fat cream cheese (more taste than fat-free). My husband and I loved it. I will definitely be making this again. I may also try wheat pasta next time.

Reviewed on Apr. 29, 2011 by lurky27

This is yummy, it just takes a while to assemble & prepare.

~ Theresa

Reviewed on Nov. 17, 2010 by bakerswoman

I used ground turkey with taco seasoning and added a can of Mexican stewed tomatoes though and it was go good. My family is waiting for me to make it again! :D

Reviewed on Nov. 16, 2010 by Lisa Ruby

My family loved this recipe. I didn't use the low fat or fat free choices but it turned out great! Even my picky three and four year olds liked it!

Reviewed on Oct. 13, 2010 by badkitty

It was o.k. and very filling but not one of our favs. I wouldn't make it again, but it was nice to try something different.

Reviewed on Jun. 16, 2010 by cookmama300

My family really liked this recipe. The only change I made was using red onion on top instead of green just because I didn't have any. Easy to make too.

Reviewed on Jan. 28, 2010 by plugginalong

This was very good. I made it with rice penne pasta (avoiding wheat). The cream cheese and milk get real frothy when whipped so it adds a nice texture to the cheesey spinach middle.

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