Baked Rigatoni

After lasagna (did I spell it right, Mum?...), baked rigatoni is my favourite pasta.  Really, it's just lazy lasagna.  So, how do you make it?

First start with a big batch of Spaghetti sauce

Then, spray your lasagna baking dish (the old 9x13 one).  Preheat oven to 375F.

Next, boil your rigatoni noodles, about 600g for 6 people (and if anyone out there has found whole wheat rigatoni, please let me know, because of all the pastas we eat in our house, it is the one that I can never find in whole wheat).
While they are boiling away, steam about 1/2 a package of spinach in the microwave (tip: cut it up into strips with your scissors before you steam it)...put spinach into microwave safe bowl, add about 1 tbsp of water, microwave on high for 1 minute 30sec.  Take out and stir, it should be cooked enough, but if not, give it another 30 seconds.  Add 1 cup of cottage cheese and 1/4 cup grated Parmesan to the spinach and stir to combine.

Spinach and cheese mixture

Drain pasta, return to pot with a small amount of spaghetti sauce, like 1/2 a cup (this will help to keep the pasta from sticking to the pot).  Stir to combine, add spinach and cheese mixture.  Add another 1 cup of spaghetti sauce.  And then pour pasta mixture into prepared lasagna pan.  If needed add more sauce, and spread evenly in the pan.
Grate about 1 cup of cheese (mozzarella or low fat cheddar is what I use).  Sprinkle on top of pasta mixture.  Place pasta in oven and bake for 35 minutes(until sauce is bubbling and cheese has melted nicely, maybe a little bit brown in spots).  Remove from oven and allow to stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Serve with your favourite green salad or Caesar salad.








 
And make them really happy by adding dessert...

Lemon Cranberry Loaf

If you are lucky, you will have leftovers for lunch...Today, it went in everyone's lunch bag (the pasta, not the Lemon Cranberry loaf).  Yay, no sandwiches to make!


Find more yummy goodies at :

• 33 Shades of Green: Tasty Tuesdays
• Permanent Posies

Happy Packing!

Kim

K is for ...Kim's homemade spaghetti sauce

Yes, I know.  It only starts with "K" because I put "Kim" in front of it.

Kim's Homemade Spaghetti Sauce 

(and please feel free to call it your own, as once you have made it a couple of times, it will be)

1 kg (approx 2 lbs) ground meat (could be turkey, chicken, beef or you could use two packages of Yves Veggie Ground Round , the favourite in our house is half pork with half beef or turkey)

1 Tbsp canola oil

2 large onions (or three smaller ones) chopped quite small (but not minced)

3  796ml (28 oz) cans of crushed or diced tomatoes, or a combination.  If you shop at Costco and you can get the HUGE cans of tomatoes, that is what I use and I only use one, usually crushed.

1-2 TBSP dried oregano

1 tsp basil

1 tsp coarse salt (or less, and if you are using no-salt-added tomatoes, add up to 2 1/2 tsp coarse salt)

From here, the ingredients are up to you.  You can add a zucchini, a few peppers, some carrots, even some spinach.  

Mine tonight was:

10 medium carrots, peeled and chopped

3 yams, baked and then scooped out to add with tomatoes

3 red peppers, chopped fine

a can of sliced mushrooms, drained (no salt added)

and a handful of spinach, chopped

Preheat oven to 325F

In a large roaster pan with a lid, add canola oil, and warm for 5 minutes in preheated oven.  Add ground meat to warmed pan, break up slightly with wooden spoon.  Add salt, oregano and basil.  Return pan to oven, uncovered, and bake for 15-20 minutes.  While baking, prepare vegetables for adding to meat (peel and chop).  Once your meat has browned (if you are using veggie ground round, heat it for 5-7 minues until warmed through), add onions and peppers and carrots if using, mix well and continue baking in the covered roaster for 20-30 minutes, until carrots are soft (tip: if they don't get soft before you add the tomatoes, they will never get really soft).

Tip: you may have noticed that I didn't drain the meat.  This is because I usually use lean or extra lean ground beef and things like turkey and pork that are already very lean.  If you are using medium ground beef, drain off the fat before adding the onions and such.

Once the carrots are soft, add the remainder of ingredients to the pan and mix well.  Cover and return to the oven to continue baking for at least 30 minutes (if you want to bake it for longer, decrease heat to 300F and continue baking for 45-60 minutes, checking every 30 minutes to make sure the edges aren't burning as this will make the sauce bitter later).

Serve with whole wheat spaghetti cooked al dente, and cheese for sprinkling.  You can add a salad too, but you will find that there are so many veggies in the sauce that you don't really have to.  (not that it stops me from putting salad on the table!).  This recipe is large enough that it is perfect for making 2 lasagnas and you still have enough left for a meal for 6 people.

And of course, the leftovers are perfect for lunches!  My kids love spaghetti in their thermoses!  I send them some grated cheese on the side to sprinkle for themselves.

Happy Packing!

An A to Z Blogger link: Krista D Ball