Combine A Pound Of Ground Beef And Cottage Cheese For A Higher-Protein Pasta Bake

Pasta may be a carb-heavy dish, but there are more than a few ways to turn it into a high-protein meal. From using one of the many protein pasta brands out there to mixing in a meat like chicken or ground beef to your recipe, adding protein into pasta is easier than you think. If you're really looking for a way to amp up your protein intake, there's one ingredient you need to be adding to your noodles along with ground beef: cottage cheese. There are a number of ways to use cottage cheese in your cooking, and adding it with your pasta is a great way to turn it into a heartier meal. Combine the cottage cheese with ground beef and you have the ultimate protein-rich pasta dish. 

A pound of ground beef already has about 65 grams of protein (the exact amount will depend on the lean-to-fat ratio). Add to that some cottage cheese — a ½ cup contains around 14 grams of protein — and you have a much more filling meal. Plus, cottage cheese has a mild, slightly salty, tangy taste and soft texture that can make your pasta bakes more flavorful and even creamier. Mixed with ground beef, the two will give your pasta a super hearty, meaty richness along with the protein. To combine the two in your pasta bake, create layers of marinara sauce, cottage cheese, cooked ground beef, and par-cooked pasta in a tray and simply bake in the oven. It should take around 20 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit to fully cook through. 

The best part about this pasta bake is that it's easy to achieve a great result and you have options to make the dish your own. If you don't want to layer the ingredients like a lasagna, you could simply cook the ground beef with the marinara sauce, toss in the pasta, and transfer that mixture into a tray. Then, just top the dish off with dollops of cottage cheese before you bake. Or, there's also the option to blend the cottage cheese in with your marinara sauce before tossing the ground beef and pasta in. As a bonus, cottage cheese will create a thick sauce without the use of heavy cream.

One thing to keep in mind is that cottage cheese has a soft but lumpy texture. If that's not to your liking, blending it up first will remove the curds and give you a smoother texture. Additionally, full fat cottage cheese is recommended for a rich taste, but a lower fat option will offer a little more protein. Similarly, ground beef has a bold flavor, but you could also swap it for ground turkey as a milder protein alternative instead. All in all, cottage cheese is great for elevating ground beef dishes, and this pasta bake deserves its recognition. It's great to use as meal prep or for an easy but substantial weeknight dinner. If you were looking for a way to get more protein in along with better flavor, this pasta is an excellent dish to try.