Italian Vegetable and Meat Pasta
Kitchen Tested 
- Yield 8 servings
This is one of those hearty family dishes that satisfy growing kids. It sneaks in some good vegetables, too.
Ingredients
- 2 cups 3/4-inch cubes peeled eggplant (about 1 pound)
- 2 cups 3/4-inch cubes yellow squash
- 1/2 pound small mushrooms
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1 1/2 pounds ground sirloin
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 2 (14 1/2-ounce) cans no-salt-added whole tomatoes, coarsely chopped, with their juices
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 (16-ounce) package mostaccioli or other tubular pasta
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F. Arrange eggplant, squash and mushrooms in a single layer on a 15x10x1-inch jelly-roll pan. Drizzle vinegar over vegetables and bake 8 minutes. Turn vegetables over and bake an additional 10 minutes, or until eggplant is tender and lightly browned; set aside.
- In a large skillet coated with nonstick cooking spray, cook meat, onion and garlic over medium heat until meat is brown, about 8 minutes. Drain any excess grease. Add red pepper flakes, tomatoes, basil and oregano. Stir well. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, uncovered, 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Meanwhile, cook pasta according to the package directions, omitting any oil and salt. Drain; set aside. Add vegetable mixture to meat mixture. Sprinkle with cheese and serve over pasta.
