Yummy...

When my mom was in town right after Rocklin was born, she was kind enough to make us dinners at night. There is one in particular that she made that Adam and I just love. It's from the Cooking Light magazine, and I use wheat pasta when making it, so it's pretty healthy too! I thought I'd share the recipe with anyone who may be interested in trying something new. If you make it, let me know what you think! (And I think in the future, if I cook something good, or pull out an old recipe that I like, I will try and post it for anyone else to make. I don't know about you, but I'm always on the hunt for a good new recipe). Enjoy!

Baked Pasta with Sausage, Tomatoes and Cheese

1 (1 lb.) package uncooked ziti (I use wheat penne pasta)
1 pound turkey Italian sausage links (you can use hot turkey sausage links if you prefer)
1 cup chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tablespoon tomato paste
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 (14.5 ounce) cans petite diced tomatoes, undrained
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil (or 1/8 c. dried)
Cooking spray
1 cup (4 oz.) shredded fresh mozzarella cheese
1 cup (4 oz.) grated fresh Parmesan cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Cook pasta according to package direction, omitting salt and fat. Drain pasta; set aside.
3. Remove casings from sausage. Cook sausage, onion and garlic in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until sausage is browned, stirring to crumble. Add tomato paste, salt, black pepper and diced tomatoes to pan; bring to boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Combine cooked pasta, sausage mixture, and basil. Place half of the pasta mixture in a 4-quart casserole dish coated with cooking spray. Top with half mozzarella and half Parmesan. Repeat layers. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until bubbly.

Yield: 8 servings (serving size approx. 1 1/2 cups)Calories: 413Fat: 11.8 grams