Healthy Pasta Recipes

Whether you are losing weight thanks to exercise, pills, or surgery, one thing you can't get around is the need to eat right. All of the normal weight loss methods are highly dependent on the person's ability to eat healthy foods the majority of the time. One place many people go wrong is when they consume calorie dense pasta meals. You can eat pasta while losing weight and maintaining a healthy lifestyle, but you have to make sure it is a healthy version.

And remember to take it easy on the portion sizes for pasta! Those huge meals you get at restaurants are not the appropriate size for meals! Remember that the proper portion size should be about the size of your fist, no bigger.

Easy Pasta Salad

• Cooking time (duration): 20
• Chilling time: 4 hours
• Diet (other): Low calorie, Reduced fat
• Meal type: dinner or lunch

Ingredients:

• 1 box tri-colored rotini
• 1/2 bottle fat free Italian dressing (I like Wish Bone)
• 1 green pepper, chopped
• 1 bunch broccoli, chopped
• 2 tomatoes, finely chopped or 1 can petite diced tomatoes
• 1 cucumber, peeled and cut into bite sized chunks
• 2 carrots, diced or shredded

Instructions:

1. Prepare pasta according to directions on package
2. When done, drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process, drain again
3. Put in serving bowl, and add vegetables.
4. Pour dressing over top of pasta and vegetables.
5. Toss well and chill for at least 4 hours.

And if pasta salad isn't your thing, try this delicious lasagna guaranteed to get more healthy vegetables into your system.

Vegetarian Lasagna

• Preparation time (duration): 30 minutes
• Cooking time: 45 minutes
• Diet (other): Reduced fat, High protein
• Meal type: dinner

Ingredients:

Sauce Layer

• 1 package Morningstar Crumbles (pretend ground beef)
• 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
• 12 oz. can tomato paste
• 2 T Italian seasoning
• 3 cloves minced garlic
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 t. each salt and pepper

Pasta layer:

• 6 lasagna noodles

Filling layer:

• 24 oz. fat free cottage cheese
• 2 eggs (or egg substitute), lightly beaten
• 2 T parsley
• 3 T freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Mozzarella cheese layer:

• 8 oz. reduced fat mozzarella cheese, grated
• 4 oz. regular mozzarella cheese, grated

Instructions:

1. For sauce: Combine crumbles, crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, Italian seasoning, garlic, bay leaves and salt and pepper in large skillet.
2. Simmer for 30 minutes, stirring frequently.
3. For pasta: Cook according to package directions, omitting any oil, drain and set aside
4. For Filling: combine cottage cheese, slightly beaten eggs, parsley, Parmesan cheese. Mix until just combined.

Layer as follows in 9 x 13 casserole dish.

1. Place 3 lasagna noodles in bottom of casserole dish
2. Top noodles with 1/2 of cheese filling
3. Top cheese filling with 1/2 red sauce
4. Top red sauce with half of mozzarella cheese
5. Repeat layers, starting with 3 more noodles and ending with the remaining mozzarella cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 - 45 minutes until bubbly and cheese is melted completely.