Monday, October 24, 2011

Pasta for Dinner All Week

"Quick and easy," "kid-friendly but healthy," "light and fast."  These are the requests I hear for weeknight dinners.  Opt for pasta as the main dish and fulfill each request.  It will be tasty, too.


Ages ago, I found a recipe called Fiesta Enchilada Skillet on the fun and delicious blog Danica's Daily. I have made it many times since.  The following recipe is an adaptation using pasta.  I opted for corn pasta since corn is so prominent in Mexican cooking, but any other macaroni will do.  Make a green salad to accompany it, and your meal is on the table in no time. 

Mexican Macaroni

6 ounces (about 1 1/2 cups) corn or other elbow-style pasta
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 (11-ounce) package veggie ground beef substitute OR 1 pound lean ground meat of your choice
10 ounces (1 1/4 cups) green chile enchilada sauce
4 ounces grated reduced fat Cheddar cheese
2  Laughing Cow Light Creamy Swiss Cheese wedges, crumbled

Cook pasta according to package directions and set aside.  Meanwhile, coat large nonstick skillet with olive oil spray and place over medium heat.  Add onion and cook until translucent.  Stir in veggie beef and cook until warmed through, OR stir in meat and cook until no longer pink.  Add pasta, enchilada sauce, half the Cheddar, and half the crumbled wedges.

Bring mixture to a boil; cover, reduce heat, and simmer five minutes.  Sprinkle remaining Cheddar and wedges over top; cover again for one minute to melt cheese.  Serve immediately.  Makes 5 (1 1/4-cup) servings, 7 points plus and 308 calories each.  Adjust nutritional values if using meat.

1 comment:

  1. What a great idea Tracy. I love tht you kept it simple with minimal ingredients that still turned out delicious. There's nothing better than a quick dinner sometimes

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