A few weekends ago, I was trying to come up with something for dinner. We had church in the evening, so I knew we needed to be able to eat and run. Since it was a Saturday, I did not feel like spending time in the kitchen cooking something. I threw random ingredients in the slow cooker, and crossed my fingers it was a success. It sure was! This recipe has an Italian taste, somewhat similar to a spaghetti dish. The kids ate it up quickly and away we went, off to church! : )
Ingredients:
1 lb ground turkey (beef works too)
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce
1 can stewed tomatoes
2 tsp Italian seasoning
10 oz frozen spinach (thawed)
16 oz. cooked pasta
3/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 cup Mozzarella cheese, shredded
Directions:
In a skillet, brown the turkey/beef with onion and garlic. Once cooked, drain fat. Place meat mixture in bottom of slow cooker. Add in tomato sauce, stewed tomatoes, and Italian seasoning. Cook on low for about 5-6 hours. About 30 minutes prior to being done, add in the spinach, cooked pasta, Parmesan cheese, and Mozzarella cheese. Allow to finish cooking. Serve warm!!
Anonymous
Could it work to put the meat uncooked in the slow cooker? If so, it would be One less step, and less clean up.
Kristin and Adriana
Honestly, I would have to say no because when you “brown” the meat, it allows you to break it up and also render out the fat. If you were to cook it in the slow cooker, the fat and added juices may dilute the recipe 🙁
It sure would make things even easier though, 🙂
Leslie
I love making dishes like this. Just put it in the oven & let it go. I made a chicken & rice casserole for dinner tonight. I’m stopping by from the blog hop & I’m a new follower through Bloglovin.
Karen
I wouldn’t add the meat in uncooked for the reasons given. I prefer my meat browned & drained. However, I don’t know why you couldn’t put your uncooked pasta in before that – there should be enough liquid to cook it.
Kristin
You could definitely try adding in the pasta uncooked and allow it to cook in the slow cooker. If you do try it, be sure to let us know how it turns out!! 🙂