WeightWatchers Pasta Casserole Recipe

Here’s a Weight Watchers pasta bake recipe that’s not as cheesy as the usual ones, thus making it lighter and more diet-friendly. You can re-interpret this recipe based on the seasons: try replacing the butternut squash with roasted tomatoes and zucchini in the summer, or some asparagus and dill in the spring. Don’t forget to add the toasted almonds (or some other nuts) for some crunch!

Weight Watchers Pasta Casserole recipe

Ingredients
8 oz dried whole wheat penne (or other pasta)
1 1/2 cups butternut squash, peeled and sliced into small pieces
3 handfuls spinach, chard or kale, chopped
2 cups low-fat Greek yogurt
2 large egg yolks
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted
8 large Kalamata olives, pitted and torn into pieces
1/4 cup Feta cheese, crumbled
zest of one large lemon
1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
1/4 cup fresh mint, chopped

Preparation
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Butter or oil an 8×12-inch baking dish, or two smaller gratin dishes.
3. Sprinkle with lemon zest and set aside.
4. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add salt and cook the penne until al dente.
5. 10 seconds before the pasta is cooked, stir in the spinach and butternut squash; drain quickly and carefully.
6. Run cold water over the pasta, squash and spinach (just enough to stop it from cooking), shake off any extra water and set aside.
7. While waiting for the pasta water to boil, whisk together the eggs, yogurt, garlic, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Set aside until the pasta is ready, then add the pasta-squash-spinach mixture to the yogurt mixture and stir in half of the almonds.
8. Scoop the mixture into the prepared baking dish, sprinkle with Feta cheese and the olive pieces and bake for about 25-30 minutes.
9. Remove from the oven and serve sprinkled with the remaining almonds and some chopped fresh mint.

Servings: 8

How many Weight Watchers points in pasta casserole recipe?

Nutritional information for one serving:
WW points: 4
Calories: 227
Total fat: 7.8 g
Cholesterol: 59.1 mg
Sodium: 171.1 mg
Total carbs: 33.3 g
Dietary fiber: 6.1 g
Protein: 10.7 g

[Photo credit]

You might also like these pasta recipes:

• Weight Watchers Penne with Chicken and Sun-Dried Tomatoes recipe – 7 points
• Weight Watchers Tortellini Tomato Spinach Soup recipe – 6 points
• Weight Watchers Home Made Gnocchi recipe – 5 points
• Weight Watchers Chicken and Pasta Salad recipe – 3 points
• Weight Watchers Shrimp Macaroni Salad recipe – 8 points

Originally posted 2009-10-05 13:52:54.