Million Dollar Spaghetti

Well, Alex and I are trying to lose some weight for the wedding and finding tasty, low-calorie, low-fat meals can be a little daunting. I stumbled across a spaghetti recipe on Pinterest that sounded fantastic and had some excellent reviews. So, what's the problem? It was full of red meat, refined carbs, and ginormous amounts of cheese-- a big fat mess. Modifying recipes to be healthier hasn't always worked out in our household {ugh, I'm remembering an Orange Marmalade French Toast Casserole recipe that I attempted not too long ago} Surprisingly enough, even after making a generous amount of healthier substitutions, the modified spaghetti casserole still had a lot of flavor and will definitely be an addition to our menu!

What you'll need:

1 lb. ground turkey
1 jar of spaghetti sauce {I used a sauce made by a local Italian restaurant}
8 oz. fat-free Philadelphia cream cheese
1/4 c. light Daisy sour cream
1/2 lb. light Daisy cottage cheese
4 tbsp. I Can't Believe It's Not Butter Light {ICBINB}
13 oz. box of Barilla whole grain thin spaghetti
1 bag of Kraft reduced-fat shredded cheddar cheese

What you'll do:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. While you're waiting for it to heat up, go ahead and cook your pasta according to the directions on the box. I cooked mine for 6 minutes-- you'll want the pasta to be al dente.

While the pasta is cooking, mix the cream cheese, sour cream, and cottage cheese in a large bowl. Mix it thoroughly and set aside.

Go ahead and cook the turkey. Feel free to add any spices that you like-- I added a little cumin and minced garlic to enhance the flavor. After it's cooked and browned, drain the fat. Pour the spaghetti sauce over the turkey and set aside.

Spread two tablespoons of ICBINB on the bottom of the 9x13 casserole dish and cover with 1/2 of the noodles. Pour the big bowl of creamy goodness on top of the noodles and spread it evenly. Add the remaining noodles and spread the other two tbsp of ICBINB on top of the noodles. Pour the meat sauce on top and spread it evenly.

Place the uncovered casserole in the oven for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, remove the dish, add some shredded cheddar to the top of the casserole, and pop it back in the oven for 15 more minutes.

We had some leftover green onions and mushrooms in the fridge, so I sauteed them right up and topped the casserole off.

I added up the calories for each ingredient and discovered that 1/6 of the casserole is approximately 581 calories. Not too shabby, if you ask me. ENJOY!

~B