Garden Fresh Pasta Bake

Total Time: 40 mins Preparation Time: 20 mins Cook Time: 20 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 12
• 16 ounces pasta, shapes (bowties, rotini, rigatoni, whatever you have on hand)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 zucchini, sliced in thin half-moons (1 green, 1 yellow if you like things pretty!)
• 6 large mushrooms, sliced
• 1 carrot, finely diced
• 10 -16 ounces baby spinach, sliced
• 26 ounces pasta sauce
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup half-and-half (or heavy cream or fat free half and half)
• 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (divided)

Recipe

• 1 cook the pasta as directed. preheat oven to 375.
• 2 in a very large pan, heat olive oil and saute zucchini until browned. add mushrooms and carrot and cook until mushrooms are softened. add spinach, cook until wilted.
• 3 pour pasta sauce the pan, heat through. sprinkle parmesan on top of vegetable mixture, swirl in half and half. stir in 1 cup of the shredded mozzarella. remove from heat.
• 4 toss cooked pasta with vegetable mixture. put into a greased casserole dish (i use a 9x13 pan) and top with remaining 2 cups of mozzarella.
• 5 bake until cheese browns, about 20-30 minutes.