Low Fat Pesto Baked Ziti Recipes

LOW FAT PESTO BAKED ZITI

Steps:

• COOK pasta (your choice) in water for 10 minutes; will be partially cooked.
• NOTE: You do NOT need to add salt or oil if watching fat content; just stir and DRAIN.
• Finely dice red onion.
• Spray pan with oil and cook onions 5 minutes until soft, ADD diced garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
• ADD crushed tomatoes, black pepper and bay leaf.
• SIMMER 10 - 15 minutes until slightly thicker.
• Spray 8 x 13 inch baking dish.
• Place 1/2 pasta on bottom.
• In small bowl, mix ricotta, pesto, 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese and half of the parmesan cheese.
• Place mixture on top of pasta and 1/3 of tomatoe sauce mixture.
• TOP with rest of pasta.
• TOP with rest of sauce.
• TOP with rest of mozzerella and parm cheese.
• BAKE in 180 degree oven for about 35- 40 minutes covered.
• NOTE: Adjust garlic to YOUR taste; I used 2 tablespoons.
• NOTE: I also use the lowest fat cheese I can find.
• NOTE: Pesto can be store bought; look at fat content on labels as can vary significantly.
• NOTE: If you like your sauce slightly thicker, add 1 - 2 tablespoons of tomato paste.
• NOTE: Is a recipe that you might have to show control eating like me! 1 cup = my portion approximately.
• ENJOY!
• I served with rocket, tomato and feta cheese salad with balsamic vinegar.

HEALTHY BAKED ZITI

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
• Bring a 5-6 quart pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook for 5 minutes. The pasta should still have a bite to it after it cooks. This helps keep the pasta from getting mushy.
• Drain the pasta and rinse. Place the pasta into a 9 x13 baking dish.
• Mix ricotta cheese, egg, romano or parmesan cheese, garlic powder, onion powder, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl. Stir in the crushed red pepper if you're using it.
• Mix the ricotta cheese mixture and spaghetti sauce in with the pasta. Start with 3-cups of sauce and add more if you need to. The pasta should be covered with sauce and cheese mixture.
• Sprinkle mozzarella over the top of the pasta mixture.
• Cover with foil and bake for 55 minutes. Uncover and bake for another 5 minutes or until cheese is melted and the baked ziti is bubbling on the sides.

LOW FAT BAKED ZITI WITH SPINACH

Steps:

• 1. Preheat oven to 375. Cook the pasta according to package, to al dente. Drain pasta and return to pot.
• 2. Heat olive oil over medium heat and sauté garlic. Add the spinach and cook until wilted (if using fresh). Add the crushed tomatoes, Salt, pepper, oregano, and basil. Heat through.
• 3. Add the sauce to the pot with the pasta. Stir in the ricotta, half of the mozzarella, and the Parmesan cheese. Place the pasta into a greased with cooking spray 13 x 9 pan. Top with remaining mozzarella. Bake for 30 minutes or until mozzarella is melted and edges are just beginning to brown.

HEALTHIER BAKED ZITI I

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees (175 degrees C). Lightly butter a 9x13-inch baking dish.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add ziti pasta and cook until al dente, about 8 minutes. Drain.
• Heat a large skillet over medium heat; cook and stir onion and ground turkey until onion is translucent and turkey is no longer pink, about 7 minutes. Add spaghetti sauce and carrot; simmer until heated through, about 15 minutes. Layer ingredients into prepared baking dish as follows: half the ziti, Provolone cheese, sour cream, half the sauce mixture, remaining ziti, mozzarella cheese, and remaining sauce mixture. Top with grated Parmesan cheese.
• Bake in preheated oven until cheeses are melted, about 30 minutes.

SURPRISING BAKED ZITI

Steps:

• preheat oven to 350.
• oil an 8x8 baking dish.
• cook pasta in salted water for 7 min, drain, and tinse.
• heat 1 1/2 tbsp of the oil in a pan over med- low heat.
• cook onion until it becomes translucent.
• add garlic and cook it for 30 sec.
• add tomato, salt, and bay leaf.
• raise heat to medium.
• simmer mixture for 10 min or until it gets very thick.
• remove the bay leaf and stir in 1/4 tsp pepper.
• in a bowl, combine the pesto, half the parmesan, the ricotta, 1 cup of the mozzarella, and the remaining black pepper.
• put 1/2 of the pasta in the baking dish.
• top with 1/3 of the sauce.
• spread entire cheese mixture evenly over the sauce.
• cover with the remaining pasta, sauce, and cheese.
• drizzle 1/2 tbsp olive oil over the top layer of cheese.
• bake until bubbling (about 30 min).
• let stand at least 10 minutes before cutting.