This Healthy Pasta Bake skips the heavy cream and uses a can of corn for a creamy, wholesome sauce. Just blend it, pour over dry pasta, and let the oven do the rest.
Do You Cook The Pasta Before Making This Pasta Bake?
Not for this recipe! Remember this geniusTuna casserole or perhaps this Tuscan Chicken Pasta? We’re borrowing the concept of throwing everything into a casserole dish (uncooked pasta and all) and letting the oven do the work for us.
But instead of whole milk, we’re using a plant-based milk alternative and a can of corn to create the ultra-creamy sauce, but in a more nutritious and lighter way. We’re also loading up this straightforward pasta bake with veggies and adding in some chicken sausage to amp up the protein.
Kid-friendly: Check! While I can’t speak for all kids, I can tell you, all three of mine gobbled this Healthy Pasta Bake and loved it! (I leave out the red pepper flakes when making it for them and instead sprinkle a few on my own plate!)
Ingredients
| Ingredient | Swaps & Tips |
|---|---|
| Corn (canned, undrained) | Use fire-roasted corn for smoky flavor, or Southwestern corn + paprika for a spiced twist |
| Pasta (penne or rotini) | Any pasta with 9–11 min boil time works |
| Almond milk (unsweetened) | Any plain, unsweetened plant-based milk |
| Smoked chicken sausage | Swap with turkey sausage, tuna, shredded chicken, or plant-based sausage |
| Frozen broccoli + corn | Use a frozen veggie blend if that’s what you have |
| Parmesan cheese | Grab a block of Parmesan and grate it on the small holes of a grater. Alternatively, use finely grated Parmesan cheese. |
Quick Tip
Use leftover chicken sausage in this Honey Mustard Chicken Sausage and Veggies, Sweet Potato and Chicken Sausage Bowls, or Sausage and Rice.
How To Make A Healthy Pasta Bake
- Blend: Add all the sauce ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth.
- Bake: Add uncooked pasta to the pan. Pour blender sauce on top and toss with pasta. Bake.
- Bake Again: Add in frozen corn, broccoli, and chicken sausage. Stir through. Return pan to oven, uncovered, and bake for another 15 minutes or until pasta is tender and sauce is thickened. Add Parmesan, basil, and dig in!
Storage
- Store the finished healthy pasta bake in the fridge. It will stay fresh for up to 3-4 days.
- Do not freeze the pasta bake, as freezing can alter its texture and consistency, particularly affecting the dairy-based sauce and pasta.
More Veggie-Packed Dinner Recipes:
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Turkey Bolognese RecipeVariations
- Southwestern: Use southwestern corn and blend with 1 teaspoon paprika.
- Turkey: Swap in smoked turkey sausage, shredded turkey, or browned ground turkey.
- Chicken: Use canned, grilled, or rotisserie chicken; mix in at the end with Parmesan.
- Tuna: Replace sausage with 2 cans drained tuna placed on top.
- Vegetarian/Vegan: Use plant-based sausage or omit it; for vegan, use plant-based butter, skip Parmesan, and add nutritional yeast or pesto.
