Creamy Spaghetti

 This spaghetti is like no other. It is almost a spaghetti casserole. Its really creamy and cheesy and oh so good! The original recipe came from my mother-in-law, and now this is my go-to spaghetti recipe. I love how easy it is to make it diet-friendly. You can sub lean ground turkey, whole wheat noodles, and low sodium cream of mushroom. You could even sneak in some finely diced veggies. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

1. In a large pot, boil your noodles. We like these whole wheat thin spaghetti noodles. We like our spaghetti meaty, so I only use about half a box.

2. While your pasta is cooking, brown your meat then drain. I usually use organic extra lean ground beef, but sometimes I use lean ground turkey.

 3. Puree diced tomatoes in a blender and add it, along with the cream of mushroom soup and ketchup, into the pan.

4. Toss the meat back in the pan and stir.

5. Put noodles and meat sauce in a casserole dish, and chop up the noddles a little bit. Add a cup of whatever cheese you like(I used half mozzarella half cheddar) and stir. Put the lid on and bake at 300 for about 45 min until hot and bubbly.

Creamy Spaghetti

1/2-1 box spaghetti noodles(depending on how meaty you want your spaghetti)
1 lb. very lean ground beef or ground turkey
1 can diced tomatoes (I like the italian seasoned ones)
1 can cream of mushroom soup (I always used Campbell's Healthy Request for less sodium and fat)
1/4 c. ketchup
1/2 tsp. salt (I always use sea salt)
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. onion powder or flakes
1/4 tsp. italian seasoning
1 c. cheese (use whatever you have on hand. I've used mozzarella, cheddar, and mexican blend before and they are all delicious)

Boil noodles in a pot of boiling water, then drain. While noodles are boiling, brown the meat and then drain. Blend the can of diced tomatoes(do not drain) in a blender or immersion blender. Add tomatoes, cream of mushroom, and ketchup to the pan you browned your meat in. Stir in seasonings, and then add the meat back into the pan. Stir. Next combine the noodles into the meat mixture. You can do this in a pot, large saucepan with lid, or a casserole dish. Today I used a casserole dish. I put the noodles in first and chopped them a bit. I then added the meat mixture and cheese and gave it a stir. Put the top on the dish and put it in a 300 deg. oven for 45 min until it gets hot and bubbly. If you do it in a pot, put the lid on and simmer on low for 45 min, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle each serving with a little parmesan cheese and enjoy!