Pesto Macaroni Bake

This is a great spin on the traditional baked ziti. We used macaroni pasta, but you could substitute any small pasta shape like ziti or rotini.

INGREDIENTS
1 lb whole-wheat macaroni
Olive oil
1/2 yellow onion, finely chopped
1/2 red pepper, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/4 cup pesto
1 can diced tomatoes
2 1/2 cups (1 package) shredded mozzarella or Italian blend cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Boil water and cook pasta according to instructions.

While the pasta is cooking, heat olive oil in a pan. Add chopped onion, pepper and garlic. Cook until the onions are translucent.

Drain the pasta. Add pesto, onion mixture, and diced tomatoes. Add 1/2 of the shredded cheese. Pour the pasta into a 9x13 dish and top with the rest of the cheese.

Cover with aluminum foil an bake at 350 for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 5 minutes.

Macaroni pasta with pesto and veggies

Pasta with cheese mixed in

We broke our 9x13 dish, so we used 2 smaller dishes.