Turkey Meatballs in Pesto Pasta Pie

The Turkey Meatballs recipe makes enough for three pasta pies so keep two of the bags in the freezer for a later date. The meatballs are also great with spaghetti and tomato sauce or mixed with the sauce and served in toasted hoagie buns for meatball sandwiches.

Turkey Meatballs in Pesto Pasta Pie
Prep Time:
30 mins
Bake Time:
20 mins
Total Time:
30 mins
Servings:
6

Ingredients

  • 5 ounce dried spaghetti, preferably whole grain spaghetti

  • 6 tablespoon purchased basil pesto

  • 1 egg, lightly beaten

  • Nonstick cooking spray

  • 1 cup ricotta cheese

  • 1 recipe Turkey Meatballs (use 1/3 portion)

  • 1 cup tomato-base pasta sauce with mushrooms

  • ½ cup sliced pitted Kalamata olives

  • 2 tablespoon water

  • ½ cup shredded pizza cheese (2 ounces)

  • Snipped fresh basil (optional)

Turkey Meatballs

  • 2 eggs

  • 1 ½ cup soft bread crumbs

  • ¾ cup finely chopped onion

  • ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese (2 ounces)

  • ½ cup oil-pack dried tomatoes, drained and finely chopped

  • 1 tablespoon dried Italian seasoning, crushed

  • 1 teaspoon garlic salt

  • ½ teaspoon ground black pepper

  • 3 pound uncooked ground turkey

Directions

  1. Cook spaghetti according to package directions; drain. Stir in 4 tablespoons of the pesto and the egg; set aside.

  2. Coat a 9-inch pie plate with cooking spray. Press spaghetti mixture onto bottom and up sides of prepared pie plate, forming a crust. In a small bowl combine ricotta and the remaining 2 tablespoons pesto; spread over the top and up the sides of the pasta crust.

  3. Preheat oven to 350°F. In a medium saucepan stir together frozen Turkey Meatballs, pasta sauce, olives, and the water. Bring to boiling, stirring occasionally; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, about 5 minutes or just until meatballs are heated through, stirring twice. Uncover pasta crust. Spoon meatball mixture into pasta crust. Cover pie loosely with foil.

  4. Bake for 25 minutes. Sprinkle with pizza cheese. Bake, uncovered, about 5 minutes more or until heated through. If desired, sprinkle with snipped fresh basil.

Turkey Meatballs

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. In a very large bowl combine eggs, bread crumbs, onion, Parmesan cheese, tomatoes, Italian seasoning, garlic salt and black pepper. Add uncooked ground turkey; mix well. Shape turkey mixture into 1-inch meatballs. Place meatballs into two 15x10x1-inch baking pans. Place baking pans on separate oven racks. Bake about 20 minutes or until meatballs are cooked through. Drain meatballs on paper towels. Arrange meatballs in clean baking pans, making sure meatballs do not touch. Cover loosely; freeze until firm. Divide meatballs among three large freezer bags or containers. Seal, label, and freeze for up to 3 months.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)

455 Calories
25g Fat
29g Carbs
29g Protein
Nutrition Facts
Servings Per Recipe 6
Calories 455
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 25g 32%
Saturated Fat 9g 45%
Cholesterol 153mg 51%
Sodium 770mg 33%
Total Carbohydrate 29g 11%
Total Sugars 5g
Protein 29g
Vitamin C 7.7mg 38%
Calcium 262.5mg 20%
Iron 3.6mg 20%
Potassium 490mg 10%
Folate, total 36.3mcg
Vitamin B-12 0.6mcg
Vitamin B-6 0.4mg

*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

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