Southwest Pasta Bake - Serves 8

Shannon023 · October 2009

Made this last night and was very tasty! Substituted ground turkey for the beef.

INGREDIENTS

* 8 ounces uncooked penne pasta
* 1 (8 ounce) package fat-free cream cheese, cubed
* 1/2 cup fat-free milk
* 1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
* 1 teaspoon dried oregano
* 1 pound lean ground beef
* 2 garlic cloves, minced
* 1 (16 ounce) jar picante sauce
* 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
* 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
* 2 teaspoons chili powder
* 1 teaspoon ground cumin
* 1 cup shredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese
* 1 (2.25 ounce) can sliced ripe olives, drained
* 1/4 cup sliced green onions

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a small mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Add milk; beat until smooth. stir in spinach and oregano; set aside. In a nonstick skillet, cook beef and garlic over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; 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.
2. In a 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in. baking dish coated with nonstick cooking spray, layer half of the meat mixture and all of the spinach mixture. Top with remaining meat mixture. Cover and bake at 350 degrees F 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.

Nutritional Content:

Nutritional Analysis: One serving (1 cup) 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.