pasta dishes

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RachelVerthein
RachelVerthein Posts: 28
in Recipes
Anyone have any good pasta dishes that are healthy? I'm a big pasta person and I'm trying to eat pasta in moderation and or make it healthier instead of just eating the same old spagetti and meatballs.
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  • SkyMusic
    SkyMusic Posts: 43
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    I, too, am a huge pasta addict.

    My favorite is getting some high quality pasta (whole wheat/gluten free, or buckwheat noodles) and putting broccoli, olives, carrots, and asparagus in it. Also sprinkle a little bit of parmesan cheese on top, and refrigerate it overnight and all the flavors kind of "set" and it's delicious the next day. I usually have about a half a cup to a whole cup of that.
  • MrsAgi
    MrsAgi Posts: 338 Member
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    Go for fresh pasta rather than dried if possible - it's more filling and has less cals (I don't know why, but there you go!)

    Easy pasta sauces:

    Pesto - you can buy a jar or make your own (basil, oil, pine nuts, cheese, garlic - throw in some red pepper/chilli/tomato if you like). Pretty healthy and not amazingly high in cals

    Pasta in tomato sauces - fry up some onions & veg of your choice, throw in some liquidised tomato/passata, a bit of oregano/thyme and plenty of pepper to season

    Any condensed soup can be thrown over pasta for an easy sauce

    A bit of cheese (go for lighter varieties) id one of my favourite pasta toppings of al time!

    Put with lean meat or fish - chicken breast, salmon fillet etc and a big pile of salad rather than bread!
  • Coach_Jenny
    Coach_Jenny Posts: 9 Member
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    Mmmm pasta. The trick for me is to always put greens in my pasta. For instance, I'm having pasta for dinner tonight and I added lots of steamed broccoli to it. Other times I add spinach to it. I know it sounds funny, but it's good! It fills me up, gives me lots of nutrition and I still get to have some pasta. :) Works for me.
  • JeSuisPrest
    JeSuisPrest Posts: 2,005 Member
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    I eat pasta quite often, many recipes to be found. Checkout the Skinnytaste and Cooking Light websites!
  • MizSaz
    MizSaz Posts: 445 Member
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    I figured out how to make a macaroni and cheese bake one day, measuring out serving sizes of skim milk, reduced fat cheese, just a tiny bit of butter, some garlic salt, a little pepper, and a wee shake of panko for crunch. The texture was definitely a little off but it came out delicious, and I kick myself in the pants for not writing it down!

    I do a fake chicken parm as well, with oven roasted b/s chicken breast and skim milk mozz, just a little bit of simple sauce (no meat, peppers & onions if I'm feeling ambitious, italian seasoning, and garlic). No frying, no breading, and I always do it with salad so it's no huge loss if I take the emphasis off of the pasta and put it on the chicken.

    I know it's been mentioned, but it's so good it should be mentioned again- skinnytaste.com!! Pinterest has been really helpful, too!
  • Carmandicus
    Carmandicus Posts: 6 Member
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    Raw zucchini pasta!
    You simply make your noodles with a potato peeler.
    There are a lot of variations on recipes, but here's two:

    http://glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.ca/2010/08/raw-zucchini-pasta-in-vegan-curry-cream.html
    http://quirkycooking.blogspot.ca/2012/01/raw-zucchini-pasta-with-walnut-mushroom.html
  • mrnls
    mrnls Posts: 95 Member
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    As @Je SuisPrest mentioned skinnytaste.com I made the Cajun Chicken Pasta (without the cream cheese) over whole wheat pasta last night and it was awesome
  • jamiem1102
    jamiem1102 Posts: 1,196 Member
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    I recently tried Whole Grain Spelt pasta, which was REALLY good and had tons of protein and fiber. :) I made 1.5 cups (dry) and surprisingly it came out to be A LOT of pasta... but calorie wise was pretty manageable.

    I love pasta too... so I hear your pain. :)
  • kokaneesailor
    kokaneesailor Posts: 337 Member
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    Wow, if you like pasta, your going to love learning how simple it is to make. I don't buy specialty pasta at 6-7 dollars a pop, I make it at home for a fraction of the price. Once you've had fresh, you will never use dried again ( unless it's a shape you can't make because you don't have the equipment.

    This is a good site to start with. Have a go at it. There are some good youtube videos as well.

    http://www.pasta-recipes-by-italians.com/how-to-make-pasta.html

    Jamie Oliver shows you the basics in this video
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C0XVDpPBHho

    Recipe from Jamie
    http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/pasta-recipes/a-basic-recipe-for-fresh-egg-pasta

    Anyway, have a go at it, most handcrank Italian made pasta machines run around 50 dollars, worth every penny in my books.
    Good Luck
  • enchantedbunny
    enchantedbunny Posts: 88
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    Ditto the fresh pasta suggestions! Here's a step by step :)

    http://nomnomcat.com/2011/09/25/fresh-pasta-a-real-eye-talian-treat/
  • itsalaina
    itsalaina Posts: 27
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    spaghetti squash! you can use it as a substitute for noodles in almost any pasta dish
  • Serah87
    Serah87 Posts: 5,481 Member
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    I eat pasta quite often, many recipes to be found. Checkout the Skinnytaste and Cooking Light websites!

    I will have to check out those sites!! Thanks :wink:
  • kennie2
    kennie2 Posts: 1,171 Member
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    I, too, am a huge pasta addict.

    My favorite is getting some high quality pasta (whole wheat/gluten free, or buckwheat noodles) and putting broccoli, olives, carrots, and asparagus in it. Also sprinkle a little bit of parmesan cheese on top, and refrigerate it overnight and all the flavors kind of "set" and it's delicious the next day. I usually have about a half a cup to a whole cup of that.

    same with that person, broccoli, olives, tuna, lemon juice
    or broccoli, prawns, mushrooms, a little tiny bit of cream cheese
    always with whole grain pasta
  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
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    I like a nice simple spaghetti bolognese. I usually make it with ground pork.
  • orangecrayon
    orangecrayon Posts: 293 Member
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    I have about a cup of my pasta preference, then generally top it with some type of sauce, basil leaves, sometimes vegetables, sometimes chicken, a little parmesan, and some pepper. Voila!
  • PlanetVelma
    PlanetVelma Posts: 1,231 Member
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    Here's a couple of recipes that I've tried....enjoy! I do prefer the crock pot version but I'm a lazy *kitten*. LOL

    Enjoy! :)

    http://www.skinnytaste.com/2009/12/pasta-with-bolognese-sauce.html

    http://www.skinnytaste.com/2012/01/crock-pot-bolognese-sauce.html
  • flagator11
    flagator11 Posts: 103 Member
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    Chicken breast and broccoli over whole wheat penne in lemon pesto sauce. Yum!
  • jesss5885
    jesss5885 Posts: 187 Member
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    if i eat pasta i definitely LOAD it up with veggies.

    I've been able to satisfy my pasta cravings with shirataki tofu noodles - they come in fettuccini, angel hair, macaroni, and spaghetti shapes.

    8 oz are only 40 calories, 1 g fat, 6g carbs, and 2g protein. i like to mix it with morningstar meatless soy crumbles, 1/4 c of part skim shredded mozzarella, and 1/2 c of tomato sauce or grilled chicken and 1/2 c of vodka sauce.

    they make great carry-to-work lunches because they heat up so well in the microwave!
  • EbonySD
    EbonySD Posts: 142
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    abs diet for women chicken ala king kong. uses whole wheat pasta (about 2 oz serving), canned sauce and chicken tenders. Msg me if you want receipe.
  • iqnas
    iqnas Posts: 445 Member
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    Bump.
    I'm a huge pasta girl!

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