Baked Ziti
 

Baked Ziti

Ingredients:

1 ½ lbs ground turkey breast, or 1 lb lean ground beef (90 to 95% lean)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 jar pasta/spaghetti sauce, such as marinara (lowest sodium possible)
1 ½ cups shredded, reduced-fat mozzarella cheese
5 cups cooked tub-shaped noodles (3 cups uncooked)
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preparation:

In a large saucepan, over medium-high heat, cook beef & onion until beef is browned, stirring to separate meat. Drain any excess fat.
Stir in pasta sauce, 1 cup cheese, and noodles. Spoon into 3-quart shallow baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese & parmesan cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Makes: 8 servings

Serving size: 1/8 recipe; about 1 ¼ to 1 ½ cups

LA Exchange: 1 Protein, 2 Vegetables, 1 Starch

I haven't tried this recipe yet, but whenever I want to make sauce or a marinara like sauce, I make my own. It's easier and has far less sodium than any jar kind.

I buy a can of the No Salt Added whole peeled tomatos. If I remembery correctly the sodium is ridiculously low, like double digits. I use my Pampered Chef food chopper, but any will work just fine, and I chop up the tomatoes, but not turn them to mush, just break them up into pieces. I'll do the same with a little onion, some garlic and mix. I'll add all the seasonings I want...basil, parsley, oregano, cilantro, garlic powder, a little chili garlic sauce for spice. Mrs. Dash makes a great no salt italian seasoning. If I want it a little "saucier", because this can be pretty thick, I'll add a small can of No Salt Added tomato sauce. Mix and heat!

I made this tonight and it is yummy!! I found some Low sodium marinara at the HFS that only had 20 gm. sodium. It was kind of bland, so I just added some more MLS and spices and man it's good. the serving size is huge too.
Definitely a keeper.

This is one of our favorites. And I love the fact that it is 2 Veggies! The leftovers are great for lunches too.

Question, what size jarred sauce do I need to use for the baked Ziti??

I've also made something like that with chick peas instead of meat. It's very good!

The kind that I use is 20 oz.

Thanks for the info, I didnt want to use too much!

This was absolutely delicious. My two stepdaughters begged us to pack it in their lunches the next day. :D

I used Trader Joe's Organic no-salt-added sauce and it came out wonderfully. Oh yeah, and I added a few cloves of garlic to the onions and meat mixture. Delish!

is there no LA exchange for dairy with this recipe? it sounds great & i hope to try it tonight, but wonder about the 1.5 cups of mozzarella...

Sher - 4 oz of lite cheese is a veggie protein.......so maybe that's where they are counting the cheese. Deb (or someone with LA Chef) may want to write and have them confirm.

Sher - 4 oz of lite cheese is a veggie protein.......so maybe that's where they are counting the cheese. Deb (or someone with LA Chef) may want to write and have them confirm.

If you break it down into 8 servings, you only get 1/8 c. cheese per serving. So for that small of a serving, it actually counts as a condiment.

sweet! thanks for responding! i made it last night and LOVED it!! packed it for lunch today, too! however, next time i make it, i'll probably skip the putting it in the oven part. i liked it right after i tossed it all together.

Another suggestion for the pasta sauce is the Meijer Organic brand. That of course is granted you live where there are Meijer's... It has about half the sodium than the leading brands and is comparable in price.