Easy Cheesy Beef and Spinach Pasta

When our evening schedule gets really jam-packed like it is right now, cooking healthy meals for my family gets difficult .  I find myself falling more and more to either convenience foods or to a few quick and easy recipes that I can throw together with ingredients I have in the house (this, this, and this being among our family's favorites).  However, lately we have gotten a little tired of the same round robin of quick recipes and I have been on the hunt to add some more into the rotation.   This one was one that was a smashing success at our house.  It took about 5 minutes to chop the spinach and garlic and the rest of it came together in about 15 minutes!  Only 20 minutes of effort and it made a meal that the whole family loved.  The combination of cheese, tomato sauce, and pasta proved to be a winning combination and I will definitely be making this again soon!

Click here for printable recipe.

Posted by Lara.


The ingredients:
2 cups uncooked penne pasta
1 lb. ground beef (I used ground turkey)
1 tsp. minced garlic (could use garlic powder)
1 can (15-oz.) tomato sauce ( I used pizza sauce)
1-3/4 cup beef or chicken broth
1-1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning (I used 3/4 tsp. basil, 3/4 tsp. oregano)
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 cups fresh spinach, chopped
2 cups grated mozzarella cheese

Directions: 
Cook pasta as directed on package.  Drain and set aside. 


Brown the ground beef or turkey.  Drain fat, then add minced garlic, tomato sauce (or pizza sauce), broth, Italian seasoning, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper. 

Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer for 12-15 minutes or until slightly thickened.   Add chopped spinach and stir. 

Add cooked, drained pasta and stir.  Sprinkle mozzarella cheese over the top and stir.   Makes 4-5 servings. 

Serve hot. 

Enjoy! 

Recipe adapted slightly from Joyful Homemaking.