Low-Cal Pasta Dish? Yes, Please!

My kids love Try Something New Tuesday. Seriously. They get so excited about tasting new foods and helping me make the dishes. As such, my 8-year-old got it in her head a couple of weeks ago that I needed to make spaghetti with vegetables. I think this stemmed from the veggie lasagna I made a couple of months ago (that she LOVED).

As luck would have it, my sister pinned this recipe on Pinterest last week. As soon as I saw it, I knew it would be a good option for my girl's vision. I showed it to her, and we decided it was going to be this week's TSNT post. 

Without further ado, here's the ensemble.

First, you're going to cook your ziti according to the package directions.

Next (or while the ziti is cooking), you need to chop some yellow squash, zucchini and onion. I did this in my food processor. My veggies were somewhere between minced and chopped. Smaller veggies are usually a little easier to persuade my children to eat.

The girl with the chopped/minced veggies.

Next, chop up a couple of tomatoes.

Then you're going to heat some oil in a large skillet. Add the squash, zucchini and onion, and saute for 5 minutes. 

Then add the tomato and some garlic and saute another 3 minutes.

Remove the skillet from the heat and add your pasta, some mozzarella, herbs, salt and pepper. I failed to get a photo of this. It was pretty though. Take my word for it.

In a small bowl, combine the ricotta, some salt and an egg.

Stir the ricotta mixture into the pasta/veggie mix.

Pour into a greased baking dish, and sprinkle with some more mozzarella.

Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes or so.

I'm not sure I can adequately convey how much I loved this dish. The herbs make it. The kids loved it too. They asked if I was going to take photos of them eating it. But since I'm their mother, and even I am sick of photos of them eating and giving a thumbs up, I decided to restrain myself. 

And, although I didn't calculate the nutrition myself, the website said it was 301 calories and 16.5 grams of protein for A QUARTER OF THE PAN!!! I could totally eat a quarter of it. And I did some quick calculations in my head, and that sounds about right.

 Make this. Make it now. With all your summer veggies. You'll thank me later.

Baked Ziti and Summer Veggies

• 4 ounces uncooked ziti (this is about 1/4 of a 16 oz. box)
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 cups chopped yellow squash (I used 1-1/2 very large squash)
• 1 cup chopped zucchini (I used 1 large zucchini)
• 1/2 cup chopped onion (I used 1/2 of an onion)
• 2 cups chopped tomatoes (I used 2 tomatoes)
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
• 2 Tbsp. basil
• 2 tsp. oregano (I used Italian seasoning)
• 3/4 tsp. salt, divided
• 1/8 tsp. crushed red pepper
• 1/4 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• cooking spray

1. Cook pasta according to package directions and drain. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan. Add squash, zucchini, and onion; saute 5 minutes. Add tomato and garlic; saute 3 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in pasta, 1/2 cup mozzarella, herbs, 1/2 tsp. salt and pepper.

3. In a small bowl, combine ricotta, remaining salt and egg. Stir into pasta mixture. Spoon into a greased baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes or until bubbly and brown.

Question of the Day:

What's your favorite summer vegetable?