Frugal Recipes: Turkey & Hidden Veggie Bolognese

Today I had some spinach from the farmer's market that wasn't going to stay good much longer, so I decided to make a puree and figure out what to do with it later. I make purees when I have produce that is near the end of its time, and it can be frozen and then used later in recipes. This helps me to avoid wasting good produce.

I also had a goal to get creative with some of the things in my stockpile and avoid doing too much shopping this week. I always have lots of dry pasta and pasta sauce on hand since there are so many great deals for it. Most of my boxes of pasta I got for less than a dollar each. I also usually have lean ground turkey in my freezer since there are lots of sales on that as well, and I don't eat beef. So...pasta, sauce, ground turkey...I smell a bolognese!

I'm always experimenting with new ways to sneak veggies into foods for my daughter, so I decided to add extra veggies to the sauce. It ended up being a delicious dish that both my daughter and I thoroughly enjoyed!

Turkey & Hidden Veggie Bolognese
Ingredients:

• 10 oz Lean Ground Turkey (half a tray)
• 2.5 cups Pasta Sauce of your choice (I used Classico Tomato & Basil)
• 8 oz of dry pasta of your choice (I used Farfalle)
• 1/4 cup pureed vegetable (I used spinach)
• 1/4 cup finely chopped carrots
• grated parmesan cheese if desired

Cook pasta according to directions. While pasta is cooking, spray a pan with olive oil or pam and cook turkey over high heat until done. Put sauce in a saucepan, add pureed and chopped veggies, and cook over medium heat. Add seasonings to taste if veggie flavor is too strong (I added garlic powder). When turkey is cooked, add to sauce. Pour over cooked pasta and add cheese if you like.

I added sliced black olives to my sauce because I love them, and you could also add other types of finely chopped veggies like celery or mushrooms, depending on what you like or what you have on hand.

Success!!