Healthier Baked Ziti

October 1, 2019

Makeover a comfort food favorite with a protein boost and extra veggies so you can feel your best with this easy weeknight Healthier Baked Ziti.

Gluten Free, Grain Free, Nut Free, Egg Free, Soy Free

Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by WP Rawl/Nature’s Greens, but like always, all opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that make the Chelsey Amer Nutrition blog possible!

Just as the temperatures start to cool, I start looking for more comfort foods.

One of my favorite meals growing up was baked ziti. As a new mom, I know why this was such a staple meal in our house…

Everyone liked it (hello, pasta + cheese!)
It’s easy to make in 1 dish
The ingredients are inexpensive
Clean up is minimal
It feeds a crowd
There are usually leftovers

When comfort food leads the list for the “what do you want for dinner” conversation, I look for new ways to feel good from my favorites.

The problem with a huge bowl of pasta is that it can also leave you feeling sluggish. Since I’m a big fan of feeling good from the food I eat (I can’t feel like crap with a 4-month-old to take care of!), I wanted to find a way to enjoy my pasta and feel good too.

That’s why I love this Healthier Baked Ziti…

Using protein-packed pastas like lentil, chickpea, and even whole wheat pasta are a great way to feel better, but still enjoy a comfort food favorite.

Per 2-ounce serving, here’s how some of these newer pasta alternatives stack up in terms of protein and fiber…

Lentil penne: 11g protein, 3g fiber
Chickpea penne: 11g protein, 5g fiber
Whole wheat penne: 8g protein, 7g fiber

Simply swapping in one of these protein- and fiber-packed pastas into your favorite recipe is a simple way to feel good (it’s just a matter of buying a different box of pasta – a grocery store staple for me)

Another secret? Adding in extra greens!

Between the sauce, the cheese, and the pasta, I bet your family won’t even notice the extra bits of greens in here.

But don’t think about it as “hiding” greens. Even though I’m not yet feeding my babe, we’ll be there before I know it, so it’s on my mind. I’m a big believer of being transparent with what you feed kids. (I know easier said than done!) Let kids know there’s collard greens in this Healthier Baked Ziti!

So, let’s talk about collard greens…

When Nature’s Greens approached me to collaborate for a few months to highlight one of the less common greens, I jumped on board! Sure, we all know about romaine, spinach, arugula, and now even kale (believe it or not, kale was once a lesser known green too!), but what about less popular folks, like collard greens!

Collard greens are a member of the Brassica oleracea family of cruciferous vegetables, including bok choy, broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, kale, and more. Texturally, they’re most akin to kale and cabbage, with tough leaves that may even taste slightly bitter (until you work your magic in the kitchen!). Sure, you can enjoy collard greens raw, but they’re most commonly cooked (like in this baked pasta).

The addition of collard greens in this dish is seamless…

Make your pasta according to package instructions. While pasta is cooking, mix together your ricotta and mozzarella cheeses with garlic and spices. Then mix in your pre-washed and chopped collard greens. No pre-cooking, steaming, de-stemming, defrosting, washing, NADA! How easy is that?!

Then mix your pasta into the mixture and layer in your baking dish with your favorite sauce. I baked this healthier ziti in a pie dish for a fun presentation, but you can use a 9 x 13 baking pan too.