Build a Better Pasta

I think I could eat pasta everyday! It's easy, delicious, and it can be very healthy. Yesterday we had corkscrew pasta topped with meat sauce, cottage cheese, and shaved parmesan. I added the cottage cheese for a nice calcium boost and it was divine. Yum!

There are a few very simple things you can do to make a healthier pasta dish:

1- Choose a whole grain pasta for more fiber and protein. Try a few different brands because they can vary in flavor and texture.

2-Rinse your cooked ground beef in hot water to get rid of some fat (namely saturated fat...not good stuff.) This is a trick my mom taught me when I was young and it's awesome. Try it, you won't even notice a difference.

3- Pick a pasta sauce that has yummy veggies, or add your own! Also, several pasta sauces have high fructose corn syrup or lots of sugar. Try to avoid those, when possible.

Simple Pasta
4 c. dry whole wheat corkscrew pasta
1 lb. lean ground beef
salt
onion powder (or 1/4 c. chopped onion)
1 jar pasta sauce (I like veggie flavor)
cottage cheese
parmesan cheese

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain. In a large skillet, brown ground beef and then rinse under hot water. Return to skillet and add salt and onion powder to taste. Stir in pasta sauce. Serve meat sauce over pasta and top with cheese. Enjoy!