This garlic mushroom pasta bake is loaded with veg such as chestnut mushrooms, spinach, and tomatoes.
Mature Cheddar cheese, garlic, and butter make sure this pasta bake is full of flavour. It takes just 20 minutes to prep this pasta bake. This dish is just 466 calories per serving and is part of our low calorie vegetarian meals collection.
Ingredients
- 30-45ml (2-3tbsp) olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 225g (8oz) chestnut mushrooms, wiped and halved
- 100g (4oz) baby spinach leaves
- 225g (8oz) penne pasta
- 15g (½oz) butter
- 15g (½oz) plain flour
- 300ml (½pt) milk
- 75g (3oz) mature Cheddar cheese, finely grated
- 8 cherry tomatoes, halved
Method
Heat half the oil in a large frying pan. Fry the garlic and mushrooms over a high heat until just browned, adding more oil if necessary. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the spinach.
Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large pan of lightly salted water, according to the packet instructions, until just tender. Drain well and rinse under cold water.
Preheat the oven to 190°C (375°F, gas mark 5). Heat the butter in a pan, then stir in the flour and cook for 1 min. Gradually add the milk, whisking all the time. Simmer for 2-3 mins until thickened. Stir in the cheese and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Stir the pasta into the cheese sauce and add the mushroom and spinach mixture. Spoon into a large ovenproof dish and top with tomatoes. Bake for 20-25 mins until golden and bubbling.
Top tips for making garlic mushroom pasta bake
You can easily adapt this recipe to up your five-a-day count. We’d recommend adding broccoli, sweetcorn or onions.
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