This Lightened Up Baked Feta Pasta Bake was inspired by TikTok’s famous baked feta pasta- this version is lightened up and simple to make-packed with so much goodness- melted feta cheese, garlic, olive oil, white cooking wine, cherry tomatoes, and fresh basil-then baked to perfection!
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Additional Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
Ingredients
- 16 oz. or 1 lb. uncooked pasta- I use fiber gourmet or barilla plus pasta-but any pasta will work or even cooked spaghetti squash or zucchini noodles
- 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 Tbsp dry white cooking wine
- 2 pints cherry or grape tomatoes, preferably different colors
- 8 oz. feta-chunk/block *see notes
- 2 cloves or 2 tsp garlic, minced
- pinch red pepper flakes
- 3 Tbsp fresh basil leaves, chopped
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Place the block of feta cheese in the center of a 9×13-inch or 3-quart baking dish. Arrange cherry tomatoes around the cheese.
- Drizzle the olive oil and white cooking wine over the tomatoes and feta cheese, ensuring the tomatoes have been tossed with a little bit of oil.
- Sprinkle the top of the feta with minced garlic, fresh basil, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper.
- Bake uncovered in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes.
- After it’s baked for 35 minutes, turn the broiler on high and broil for 2-4 minutes or until the top of the feta has a golden crust to it and tomatoes begin to blister and pop.
- Meanwhile, cook the pasta to al dente per the package directions. I recommend adding a bit of salt to the water for added flavor. I recommend reserving a cup of the pasta cooking water to add into the feta tomato mixture pasta to help thin out the sauce.
- Drain and set aside.
- Mash feta and tomatoes using the back of a fork.
- Add the cooked pasta and/or 1 cup cooked chicken, shrimp, or Italian sausage crumbles, for additional points and if desired.
- If sauce is too thick, feel free to add some reserved pasta water to thin sauce, if desired.
- Stir until ingredients are well combined. Garnish with fresh basil, if desired.
Makes 8 ( 1 and 1/4 cup) servings /serving includes 1 cup cooked penne pasta and 1/4 cup feta/tomato mixture
8 Points® per serving if using penne pasta
7 Points® per serving if using whole grain penne pasta
3 Points® per serving if using zucchini noodles
Notes
- 2 oz uncooked equals about 1 cup cooked or about 5 oz cooked.
- Block or chunk feta cheese works best and melts nicely. That’s because the block is less processed and will give a more melty consistency when baked. If you can’t find the block feta cheese- you can use crumbled feta. Regular, reduced fat, and fat free feta would work. President Cheese brand makes a fat free chunk feta cheese.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. You can add a bit of chicken broth if the pasta is a bit dry prior to reheating.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 238Total Fat: 9gSaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 15mgSodium: 484mgCarbohydrates: 48gNet Carbohydrates: 27gFiber: 21gSugar: 3gProtein: 14g
