Low-Fat Vegetable and Pasta Casserole

echo echo's Note:

A good casserole for dieters.

• Total Time: 1 hrs
• Prep Time: 30 mins
• Cook Time: 30 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 8

• 1 (16 ounce) package penne or 1 (16 ounce) package rotini pasta
• 2 cups chopped broccoli
• 1 cup mushroom, sliced
• 1 cup green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1/4 cup flour
• 4 cups skim milk
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese or 1/2 cup romano cheese
• white pepper
• 5 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
• 1/3 cup dry breadcrumbs
• butter-flavored cooking spray

Directions:

1. Cook pasta 6 minutes in boiling water.
2. Add the broccoli through bell pepper to the pasta and simmer 6-8 minutes more until pasta is al dente; drain.
3. Make white sauce: sauté the onions and garlic in butter 1-2 minutes in a saucepan over medium-high heat; stir in flour and milk and cook, stirring, about 5 minutes until mixture coats the back of a spoon; remove from heat.
4. Setting aside 2 Tbs parmesan cheese, stir the rest of cheese and the pepper into the white sauce.
5. Combine the pasta and vegetables, white sauce and 4 Tbs of the basil; place in 13 X 9-inch baking pan or 3-1/2 quart casserole.
6. Mix the breadcrumbs with the remaining 2 Tbs parmesan & remaining 1 T basil; sprinkle over the casserole.
7. Spray butter-flavored spray over top to coat.
8. Bake at 350° approximately 30 minutes until golden brown.

Reviews

[Kat in MA USA]

Really really gross...I put black olives, broccoli, onions, 5 large cloves of garlic, 4 tablespoons of dried basil, and mozzarella cheese on top. I had to add a lot of salt and even then it wasn't edible. Did not look anything like photographed sadly. I won't be making this again.

[Megan and Jeremy]

We really liked this casserole, but i did change a few things. I needed to use some leftover chicken so i added 2 cups of chopped chicken after everything else was mixed.I also used a yellow bell pepper because they have a better flavor. Didn't have Parmesan cheese so i used mozzarella instead. Next time i will definitely use Parmesan for a stronger flavor. Also added seasoning salt after it was cooked for some more flavor and salt. Thanks for a great recipe!

[rmarcella56]

This is a fabulous recipe. I make it every week and it's great for a diet. You can use lots of different vegetables and use up what you have at hand - I've done it with Kale or cabbage rather than broccoli and it's just great. Thanks for this recipe.