Southwestern Turkey Pasta Bake

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Family meal planning isn’t always as easy as one would think. By the time you factor in busy schedules, picky eaters, and trying to stick to a budget, it can be quite a challenge. If your family has dietary restrictions (our family is now following a gluten free diet due to allergies), it’s even trickier! It helps to have a list of favorite family meals that are budget-friendly and simple (especially for busy weeknights).

Southwestern Turkey Pasta Bake is one of our favorite family meals. With a flavorful southwestern-inspired sauce, pasta, and turkey breast, this gluten free dinner is easy-to-make, budget friendly, and the whole family will love it!

And my favorite part? This Southwestern Turkey Pasta Bake recipe makes enough for two full dinners for my family of six! That means a night of leftovers!

Now that just about everyone is back in school, we’re faced with increasingly busy schedules and even more things than ever on our daily to-do lists. Easy family dinners are essential for many families, especially if you’re trying to cook more homemade meals and eat less take-out.

Southwestern Turkey Pasta Bake is a great one to add to your easy meal list. The saucy Southwestern flavor adds enough flavor that it’s a nice change-of-pace dinner, but it’s not overwhelming for little mouths. (Of course, you can adjust the spices to your taste.)

I always use Shady Brook Farms turkey for my family because it’s important that I know what my family is eating. And I know exactly where Shady Brook Farms turkeys come from because I’ve seen one of their family farms first hand. You can read more about my turkey farm experience here.

Shady Brook Farms turkeys are raised by independent family-farms with no growth-promoting antibiotics, steroids, or hormones. It’s also affordable so we moms can feel great about feeding our families well while staying on budget.

{Note: Shady Brook Farms turkey is available in the northeast. It’s known as Honeysuckle White Turkey in other areas of the US.}

One package of Shady Brook Farms fresh turkey breast cutlets is enough to make our Southwestern Turkey Pasta Bake recipe. And while you can use chicken breast in this recipe, I highly recommend turkey because it’s even more flavorful and delicious!

Southwestern Turkey Pasta Bake

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With a flavorful southwestern-inspired sauce, pasta, and turkey breast, this gluten free dinner is easy-to-make, budget friendly, and the whole family will love it!

• Author: Erika Bragdon
• Prep Time: 25 mins
• Cook Time: 20 mins
• Total Time: 45 mins

Ingredients

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• 4 turkey breasts (about 1–1.5 lb)
• 12–16 ounces gluten free spaghetti*
• ½ cup butter, unsalted
• 1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• ½ onion, diced
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1–2 6-oz. can tomato paste
• ⅓–½ cup corn starch
• 4 cups milk
• 1 14.5-oz. can diced tomatoes, drained
• 2 cups cheddar or monterey jack cheese
• Chopped cilantro, optional

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta per package package directions; drain.
3. While the pasta water is heating up, lightly season the turkey breasts with salt and pepper. Add a small amount of olive oil to a dutch oven and saute the turkey breast until cooked through. (For faster cooking, cut them into slices first.) Remove from the stove and shred. Set aside.
4. Melt the butter in that same pan over medium heat. Add the green pepper and onion; saute for about 5 minutes until tender. Mix in the garlic, cumin, chili powder, and salt. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly until well blended.
5. Whisk in the corn starch until smooth. Gradually whisk in milk. (I add about ¾ cup of milk at a time, stirring well after each addition.) Cook, whisking, until thickened, about 3-5 minutes.
6. Remove from heat; add diced tomatoes, 1 cup of cheese, spaghetti noodles and turkey breast.
7. Scrape into a 9×13” baking dish. Bake until bubbly about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Let stand for about 10 minutes before serving.

Notes

*use 16 ounces if you want to make the meal last longer

Note: you can use chicken breast as a substitute for the turkey.

Looking for more easy family meals? Check out the Shady Brook Farms recipe index, where you can browse tons of tasty turkey-inspired recipes.

Here’s another of our own favorite family meals – Savory Ground Turkey & Quinoa One Pot Dinner:

Disclosure: I’m a Shady Brook Farms sponsored ambassador; all opinions and ideas are still my own.