Non-Dairy Baked Penne Pasta

This is a tasty lactose-free baked pasta dish that I serve with a garden salad and slices of garlic bread. My family loves it! See my note about making this into a vegan or vegetarian dish.

• Preparation Time: 30 mins
• Cooking Time: 1 hr 5 mins
• Total Time: 1 hr 35 mins
• Calories: 625 Calories

Ingredients

• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 ½ teaspoons Italian seasoning
• 1 ½ teaspoons salt, divided
• 1 pound lean ground turkey
• 1 large sweet onion, diced
• 2 teaspoons ground black pepper, divided
• cooking spray (such as Pam®)
• 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 (1 pound) package whole wheat penne pasta
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can petite diced tomatoes, undrained
• 6 mild Italian sausages
• 2 (24 ounce) jars tomato and basil pasta sauce (such as Bertolli®), divided
• 2 (8 ounce) packages shredded mozzarella-style vegan cheese (such as Daiya®)

Recipe Instructions

Step 1

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spray two 9x13-inch baking dishes with cooking spray.

Step 2

Bring a large pot of water with olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon salt to a boil; add whole wheat penne and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender yet firm to the bite, about 7 to 10 minutes. Drain.

Step 3

Cook and stir turkey, onion, red bell pepper, garlic, remaining salt, and 1 teaspoon black pepper together in a large skillet over medium-low heat until turkey is browned and crumbly, 7 to 10 minutes. Drain and discard grease.

Step 4

Place sausages in a pot and cover with cold water; bring water to a boil, reduce heat to medium, and simmer until sausages are no longer pink in the center, about 20 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read 160 degrees F (70 degrees C).

Step 5

Remove and discard sausage casings; chop sausage and stir into turkey mixture. Stir penne, 1 1/2 jars tomato-basil sauce, diced tomatoes, shredded block of mozzarella-style vegan cheese, 1 package shredded mozzarella-style vegan cheese, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, and remaining black pepper into turkey-sausage mixture.

Step 6

Spread the remaining tomato-basil sauce in the bottoms of the prepared baking dishes. Divide turkey-sausage mixture between the baking dishes and top each with remaining shredded mozzarella-style cheese.

Step 7

Bake in the preheated oven until cheese is melted and sauce is bubbling, about 30 minutes.