Skinny ZUCCHINI ALFREDO PASTA CASSEROLE
10-12 oz. bow tie pasta (mini penne is good too) ~ probably supposed to use about 8 oz., but then when has anyone ever used just the amount of pasta that a recipe calls for?
2-4 small zucchini and/or yellow crookneck squash (cut in half lengthwise, then sliced about 1/2” thick ~ If the squash is really thick, cut in quarters lengthwise before slicing. You want the slices about the same size as the pasta.)
1-2 sweet red mini peppers (or 2-3 TB red bell pepper), diced
1 tsp. garlic, crushed or minced……………........…2 TB flour
1 tsp. Dijon or coarse ground Mustard……...…...2 TB butter
Up to 2 cups milk (any type you like ~ I used 2% lactose free b/c that’s what I had)
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt (can be fat free) or sour cream
1/3 cup fresh grated mozzarella, Italian blend or Parmesan cheese (we like Italian blend or mozzarella best)
1 tsp. Kosher salt……………………………............…..1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. crushed or cracked red pepper
Optional: Bread Crumbs for topping (my mom topped everything with bread crumbs, but I never did like that crunchy topping)
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Preheat oven to 375. Spray a 2-1/2 qt. casserole dish with non-stick spray and set aside. ** Cook the pasta only HALF of the time that it says on the package. You’ll be baking it later, and you don’t want to over-cook it. Drain and set aside.
Heat a medium saucepan over a low heat and add the butter, garlic, and Dijon mustard. Stir about a minute until the garlic becomes fragrant; then stir in the flour and cook until the flour and butter mixture are well combined.
Whisk in 1/2 cup milk and whisk constantly until it’s all combined and thickened (this happens really fast). Drizzle in & stir/whisk the rest of the milk slowly (still over low heat) until the sauce just coats the back of the spoon (you may not need all of the milk, but keep it around because you'll need it later after adding the yogurt, especially if you added more pasta, zucchini and/or cheese than the recipe called for).
Remove sauce from heat and add the yogurt, cheese, salt, and both peppers (and the extra milk ~ you need it to be thinner with liquid so the zucchini will cook in the oven and the pasta will stay moist). Fold in the drained pasta, red mini peppers and sliced zucchini/squash; then put it all into the casserole dish. Sprinkle the bread crumbs on top (if using). Bake, COVERED, for 30-35 minutes until it’s hot and bubbly. Let it sit a couple of minutes before serving. Serves about 4-6