Whole Wheat Baked Ziti with Kale

This Whole Wheat Baked Ziti is a healthier twist on the comforting Italian-American classic and is perfect for meal prep.

Ever think ‘I want to start eating healthier,’ and then eat nothing but light salads that leave you feeling hangry, before giving up? *Raises hand*. The good news is that you can have your carbs, and eat them too! Enter Whole Wheat Baked Ziti. 

This casserole includes ground turkey (leaner than the beef that’s typically used this recipe), curly kale and pasta sauce all topped with plenty of gooey mozzarella. And, you can swap out ground turkey for roasted turkey if you’re looking for a way to use up those Thanksgiving leftovers!

Why You should make Whole Wheat Baked Ziti

This is the perfect healthier comfort food recipe, especially for colder weather. But if all that wasn’t enough to convince you, here are a few other reasons that you should make this dish:

• It’s healthier comfort food: whats more comforting than saucy pasta and gooey cheese??
• It’s high in protein and fiber: thanks to the ground turkey, kale and whole wheat pasta 
• Perfect for meal prep or feeding large families: with 9 servings, this casserole can provide multiple meals for 1-3 people, or serve a large family.
• Flexes for dietary restrictions: this recipe can be made vegetarian, vegan, dairy free or gluten free (see substitutions)

Whole Wheat Baked Ziti pairs perfectly with our Goat Cheese Salad with Cranberries (you can omit the chicken to avoid over-doing it on the animal protein) and the Green Beans with Fried Garlic and Turkey Bacon.

Ingredients

• Whole Wheat ziti – great for all the reasons listed above
• Olive oil – to prevent the ground turkey from sticking to the pan
• Garlic (minced) – to flavor the ground turkey
• Ground Turkey – for a lower-fat option you can use 99% fat free ground turkey
• Seasonings – I use what I like to call the ‘holy trinity’ of spices – salt, pepper, garlic powder
• Tomato pasta sauce – it’s best to use a high-quality pasta sauce with a smoother texture vs. a sauce with larger chunks of tomato to ensure you have a thicker sauce consistency even after the ziti is baked. Using a chunkier, more watery sauce will leave you with chunks of tomato and very little sauce after the ziti is baked.
• Curly kale (chopped) – get that fiber in, plus kale is packed with nutrients your body needs like vitamins K, C and A plus calcium, magnese and riboflabin and calcium.
• Shredded mozzarella cheese – cheese provides additional protein and calcium, plus, mozzarella tends to be lower in sodium when compared with other types of cheese
• Basil (optional) – for garnish, flavor and general ‘pizzaz’

See recipe card for quantities.

Instructions

1. Prep Set your oven to 375 degrees fahrenheit (190C). Rinse and chop basil and set aside. Fill a medium-sized pot with water and salt well to taste, place on the stove and bring to a boil. If working with leftover turkey, cut into small cubes (½ inch x ½ inch or 1 x 1 inch based on preference) and set aside.

2. Cook ground turkey. If working with ground turkey, add olive oil to a large pan and warm over medium heat for 30 seconds. Add ground turkey and season with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Then use a wooden spoon to break up the meat while it continues to cook in the pan. Ensure meat is cooking but isn’t browning, adjust heat as needed.

If working with leftover turkey, season with salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste (considering how seasoned your turkey meat is already), warming meat over medium-low heat to prevent browning.

3. Add garlic and sauce. Once turkey is half-way cooked, add minced garlic and continue to cook for 1-2 more minutes until garlic becomes translucent, while continuing to use the wooden spoon to move turkey around to ensure even cooking. When turkey is mostly cooked, add pasta sauce and continue to stir until turkey is fully incorporated before placing a lid on the pan and turning heat to medium-low.

If working with leftover turkey, add garlic once turkey is warmed, allowing to cook for 1-2 minutes until garlic is translucent before adding pasta sauce and stirring until turkey is fully incorporated before placing a lid on the pan and turning heat to medium-low.

4. Cook pasta and add kale to turkey. Add pasta sauce to the boiling water, stir once to prevent pasta from sticking to each other and allow to cook, according to box instructions, until al dente. While pasta cooks, add chopped kale to ground turkey and sauce (you may need to do this in 3-4 batches, folding in kale and allowing to cook down some between them until all kale is fully incorporated). Once kale is mostly cooked, turn burner off and replace lid.

5 Assemble and bake pasta. Once al dente, drain pasta, then pour into a 9 x 13 baking pan. Next, pour sauce with ground turkey and kale on top of pasta and use a fork or a wooden spoon to incorporate so that pasta turkey and kale and sauce are all fully combined and evenly distributed. Then sprinkle mozzarella on top so that surface is fully covered and place in oven uncovered until cheese is fully melted fully and slightly browned on the top. About 10-15 minutes. 

6. Remove from the oven. Allow to cool for about 5-10 minutes before serving, sprinkling each serving with basil, if desired.

Substitutions

Like many of our recipes, Whole Wheat Baked Ziti can be made to fit many dietary restrictions or needs.

• Vegan – to make this recipe vegan you can use ground tofu and vegan cheese.
• Vegetarian – to make this recipe vegetarian, you can omit the ground turkey or use ground turkey
• Gluten Free – to make this recipe gluten free use gluten-free pasta
• Dairy Free – make this recipe dairy free by swapping out the mozzarella for vegan mozzarella

Variations

Got dietary restrictions, or just want something a little different? We’ve got you! Here are ways you can alter this recipe so that it works for your needs!

• Vegetarian -to make this vegetarian, omit turkey (or use ground plant-based meat alternatives, like tofu, Impossible burger meat or beyond burger meat) and this recipe makes a perfectly filling meal for vegetarians, too!
• Vegan – to make this vegan, make all the modifications for vegetarians and swap mozzarella out for a vegan mozzarella cheese alternative!
• Dairy Free – To make this recipe dairy free, swap mozzarella out for a vegan mozzarella cheese alternative
• Spicy – To make this spicy, add 1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes to pasta sauce, or use a spicy marinara
• Non-Marinara Sauce – you can easily swap out the marinara sauce for any alternative that you like, such as a butternut squash or pumpkin sauce in a one to one ratio.

Equipment

• Using a nonstick pan can help limit the amount of oil needed when cooking the turkey, which can help decrease the overall fat content of this recipe
• Using ceramic or glass bakeware can help conduct heat more evenly throughout the casserole

Storage

to store this meal place in a airtight container and keep refrigerated. this will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, or in the freezer for 3-6 months.

FAQ

Food safety

• Ensure that ground turkey is cooked to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
• Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
• Wash hands after touching raw meat
• Don’t leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
• Never leave cooking food unattended
• Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
• See more guidelines at USDA.gov.