spaghetti and meatball casserole.

i know 98% of our posts are about the young miss, but i swear there are a few other things that go on in our lives (not really, but we can pretend...).  one of those things is eating, and tonight i made something pretty tasty that i think is worth sharing.  the recipe is from clean eating magazine, but i made a few adjustments (we had delicious pesto ready-made from my mother in-law so i didn't have to make it from scratch; and i used ground turkey, but the recipe calls for lean ground beef).  anyway...it's healthy and, according to the magazine, contains manganese which is an often overlooked mineral.  supposedly, there are about 275 calories per serving of this stuff, though maybe a little more since i am not sure how the pre-made pesto compares to theirs, calorically.

ingredients:
- cooking spray
- 1/2 lb whole wheat spaghetti (8 oz package)
- pesto (about 4 tbsp i think)
- 1/3 cup low fat cottage cheese
- 1 lb ground turkey (or beef)
- 1 tbsp wheat germ
- 1 tbsp milk
- 1/2 cup finely diced purple onion
- 2.5 cups (one big can) crushed tomatoes

preheat oven to 400.  spray casserole dish with non-stick spray.  cook spaghetti according to package directions; drain.  in food processor, blend a little over half of pesto with cottage cheese.  in separate bowl, mix ground meat with remaining pesto, wheat germ, and milk.  form into small meatballs (you want them about bite-size).  add onion and meatballs to a heavy skillet to brown.  once cooked, reduce heat and add tomatoes.  i also added some salt and pepper to taste.  simmer until sauce begins to thicken - about 8 minutes or so.  mix noodles in with sauce and meatballs.  put down first layer in casserole dish, then dot that layer with the pesto stuff.  add the remaining pasta, then dot the remaining pesto stuff on top.  pop it in the oven for 15-20 minutes, then serve sprinkled with parmesan, if desired.  tasty tasty!

*i should also add that i didn't have wheat germ, so i made my meatballs with just pesto and ground turkey and salt (no milk or germ) and they were still moist and delicious.