Easy Pasta Bake Dinner

Easy Dinner: Pasta Bake with home made cole slaw

Being a busy mom, blogger, teacher and foster carer I sometimes find it difficult to find the time to prepare the nutritious meals that I know my kids need and deserve. But with a little careful thought and even less planning, I’ve been able to ‘cook up’ some amazing meals that don’t break the bank and that my children love.

I will share with you a quick and easy pasta bake I often make. There are only a few ingredients needed and they may be readily available in your kitchen cupboards.

List of ingredients

100g Quick Cook Pasta

Small can tuna (in brine)

Small can cream of mushroom soup

100g grated reduced fat cheddar cheese

2 small carrots

½ apple

1 tbsp reduced fat mayonnaise

100g shredded cabbage

A pinch or 2 of blackpepper

1 tbsp chopped onion

To Make the pasta dinner:

Add pasta to boiling water and cook for 5 minutes.

Whilst pasta boils, mix the mushroom soup with half of the cheese.

Drain pasta. Empty into large bowl. Add mushroom and cheese mix along with the drained can of tuna. Combine thoroughly.

Place in oven proof dish. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top and bake for 15 minutes.

To make Cole Slaw

Wash vegetables and apple. Grate carrot and apples. Shred Cabbage (cut into strips) add reduced fat mayonnaise and mix in small bowl.

There! An easy peasy quick dinner idea for hungry kids. My kids love creamy pasta. As a way of reducing the amount of fat from lots of cheese, I put the mushroom soup in and less than half the required amount of cheese. I also use low fat version of other ingredients where possible.

As a Food teacher I also know that this is a healthy balanced meal with the following nutrients:

Protein- For growth, repair of tissues, muscle building and energy

Carbohydrates- for energy

Fat- a small amount is needed to protect the vital body organs. Omega fatty acids in oily fish too

Minerals (calcium and iron)- needed for building strong healthy bones, teeth and for strong rich red blood.

Vitamins- (C, A) these micronutrients are needed for many bodily functions such as eye health and healthy mucous membranes.

Try this quick dinner and tell us what you think. You can also do your own variations such as adding sweetcorn, or adding cooked chicken instead of tuna (still a source of protein).

Check out this post we wrote about lifestly habits and their effect on your skin.

xoxo