Baked Spaghetti Florentine - thanks Val!

[tracey67]

Val posted this on another thread, but I think it's so great that it deserves it own thread. This is perfect comfort food. I loved the flavors of the different cheeses mixed with the spinach and bacon. It's also really quick and easy to put together. I've been eating the leftovers all week and they taste just as good reheated as they did fresh from the oven. Even DH who doesn't really like cooked spinach (although he likes baby spinach in salads) and was complaining about it as I was mixing everything together, went back for seconds on this dish (which is a REAL rarity for him since he's not a big eater) and the next day he actually requested to have leftovers for lunch also. The only two minor changes I made were to use whole wheat spaghetti and regular bacon (since that's what I had).

Thanks for posting this Val! BTW -- is the rest of The Good Carb Book just as good as this recipe? If it is I may have to pick it up.


* Exported from MasterCook *

Baked Spaghetti Florentine

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 8 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Pasta

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
12 ounces spaghetti
15 ounces ricotta cheese, part skim milk
2 cups skim milk
3/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1 large egg
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic -- crushed
1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground pepper
1 pinch ground nutmeg
10 ounces frozen chopped spinach -- thawed and drained
2 cups mozzarella cheese, part skim milk
8 slices turkey bacon -- cooked, drained, and crumbled

Cook the spaghetti al dente, drain, and return to the pot. Combine the ricotta, milk, 1/2 cup of the parmesan, egg, garlic, pepper, and nutmeg in a large bowl and stir with a wire whisk to mix well. Add the spinach, mozzarella, and bacon and toss again.

Coat a 13x9 pan with spray and spread the spaghetti mixture evenly in the pan. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup parmesan over the top and then spray the top lightly with cooking spray.

Bake uncovered at 350 for 30 minutes or until the edges are bubbly and the top is lightly browned. Remove the dish from the oven and let sit 10 minutes. Cut into squares.

Source:
"posted by Val from The Good Carb Cookbook"

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 418 Calories; 15g Fat (33.5% calories from fat); 28g Protein; 41g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 74mg Cholesterol; 607mg Sodium. Exchanges: 2 Grain(Starch); 2 1/2 Lean Meat; 1/2 Vegetable; 0 Non-Fat Milk; 1 Fat.

[valchemist]

I just bought the book, Tracey. Maureen (kima) recommended it. The only recipe I have made is the spinach and cheese melts which were very good. I haven't even tried this baked spaghetti, but it is on the menu for next week, so that is why I had it typed up in mastercook. There are several other recipes I have marked to try. I will review them as I make them.

I am so glad you reviewed this recipe. I am looking forward to having it.

[tracey67]

Great! I can't wait to see what you make -- I look forward to seeing more recipes from this book! I'm sure you'll love this one.

[Canice]

Thanks, Val and Tracey - this sounds like a great weeknight dinner! Curious, Tracey, does it come out a dense casserole? Sort of carbonara-inspired? Sounds tasty, I'm just wondering what the texture/consistency are like. ?

[tracey67]

Yes, it does come out like a dense casserole (though not dense in the sense of "heavy" -- I think the ricotta and skim milk keep it light tasting). And it IS very carbonara inspired.

I was a bit worried about the casserole at first when I added the 2 cups of milk to the ricotta -- it was really liquidy and I was afraid that the pasta would never absorb the liquid and it would just be this mess, but then you add the rest of the cheese and other ingredients and it starts to thicken up. Plus, by cooking the spaghetti only until al dente, it's able to absorb any excess liquid during baking. So the final result is slightly creamy, but firm enough to cut into squares.

[Canice]

Yum! - thanks, I look forward to making this next week! :D

[Molli526]

I missed the thread on this cookbook - it looks great. I just ordered it from amazon.com.

Thanks Val, Tracey & Maureen!

[valchemist]

I made this for dinner last night. It was really yummy and very easy to do! I don't repeat recipes very often, but I will definitely repeat this one. The title of the recipe and the ingredients sound pretty average, but the resulting dish isn't average at all.

I accidentally left a line out of the recipe directions. I failed to mention what to do with the spaghetti. Here is the recipe again. I have bolded the sentence I left out in the recipe I gave tracey.


* Exported from MasterCook *

Baked Spaghetti Florentine

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 8 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Main Dish Pasta


Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
12 ozs spaghetti
15 ozs nonfat or reduced fat ricotta cheese
2 c skim or lowfat milk
3/4 c Parmesan cheese
1/4 c fat free egg substitute -- or 1 whole egg
1 1/2 tsps crushed garlic
1/2 tsp coarsely ground pepper
1 pinch ground nutmeg
10 ozs frozen chopped spinach -- thawed and drained
2 c reduced fat mozzarella cheese
8 slice extra lean tukey bacon -- cooked, drained, and crumbled

Cook the spaghetti al dente, drain, and return to the pot. Combine the ricotta, milk, 1/2 cup of the parmesan, egg substitute, garlic, pepper, and nutmeg in a large bowl and stir with a wire whisk to mix well. Add the ricotta mixture to the spaghetti and toss to mix well. Add the spinach, mozzarella, and bacon and toss again.

Coat a 13x9 pan with spray and spread the spaghetti mixture evenly in the pan. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 c parmesan over the top and then spray the top lightly with cooking spray.

Bake uncovered at 350 for 30 minutes or until the edges are bubbly and the top is lightly browned. Remove the dish from the oven and let sit 10 minutes. Cut into squares.

Source:
"The Good Carb Cookbook"

notes:

for variety, substitue broccoli for the spinach.

per serving: 331 cal, 3.7 g fat, 2.1 g fiber, 29 g protein

[meslgh]

I came across this thread in the course of looking for a carbonara recipe, and thought this sounds yummy. However, since I am a fat gram counter, I noticed a discrepancy between tracey/Mastercook's 15 grams of fat and valchemist/Good Carb Cookbook's 3.7 grams of fat. Anybody know what's responsible for the difference (I'm afraid that 15 grams is more likely to be correct, :mad: ).

[valchemist]

well, for one thing, tracey's version uses part skim ricotta and the nutritional info for the recipe in the book was calculated using fat free. the recipe in the book probably also usesd ff mozarella, but I am not sure since I don't have the book with me now.

[valchemist]

yes, I just checked the cookbook. the nutritional values that are listed in the book correspond to the recipe made with fat free ricotta and fat free mozarella.

[ElinorC]

I just tried this dish and we thought it was very tasty. It tasted like Spaghetti Carbonara. I added red bell pepper and onion for color. I wonder if the sauce could be made a little wetter and more creamy and still hold it's shape. Any ideas? Maybe a little more milk and some flour?

[neeter]

This was delicious! Thanks for sharing the recipe!

I added cooked chicken, onion and garlic powder, and used fusilli...and topped with breadcrumbs. I would like the sauce to be a little creamier and less dense too (we ate as a regular pasta dish, and did not cut into squares). Maybe more milk, or ff half and half?

Thanks again!

[newcook]

I made the recipe exactly as is and what can I say YUM, YUM, Yum.

It was by coincidence that there was a local cooking show on while I was eating it that had a very similar recipe except that they left out the garlic, put in more nutmeg and added 6 tablespoons toasted pine nuts and a small handful of golden raisins. It really looked delicious.

It will be a while before I make it again seeing as the recipe gave me 8 portions and it will take me some time to eat it all (I put it in individual containers and in the freezer).

Is anyone game to try it with the pine nuts and raisins?

Daniele

[ShanaG]

This dish had great flavor, and re-heated wonderfully, with the exception of the bacon, which was a little soggy. Next time, if I am not feeding a crowd and expect to have leftovers, I may leave the bacon out, because I think this dish would still have enough flavor without it (I did add extra garlic). And I may follow Elinor's example and add red bell peppers :)