Three Cheese Italian Turkey Bake

There are some new products on the supermarket shelves offered by Kraft??that make a nice pasta and “cheese” dish for a family of four. I like the idea, but don’t like the powdered “cheese” that comes with these dinners.? I decided to come up with my own version of one of these dinners, using fresh ingredients.? This recipe is wonderful because in addition to being a very tasty dish, it freezes and reheats perfectly.? This makes it a nice addition to your make ahead meal recipe stash.

I used a?one pound box of radiatore pasta for this dish.? I found an excellent link to an authentic Italian pasta chart to share with all of you.? You can check it out here, and see what radiatore looks like.?

Three Cheese Italian Turkey Bake

Ingredients:

1?lb. radiatore pasta, cooked to al dente and drained

2 1/2 Cups cooked,?cubed turkey breast (dark meat can be used too if you prefer)

8 Tbsp. (1 stick) butter

8 Tbsp. Wondra flour

1 heaping tsp. minced fresh garlic (you can also use jarred garlic)

1 tsp. Italian seasoning

4 C. milk (I used two percent)

1 C. shredded Italian cheese blend (I used parmesan, romano and asiago)

1 C. powdered parmesan cheese

Salt and pepper to taste

3/4 C. Panko bread crumbs

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.? Spray an 11 by 14 inch baking dish (you can use a dutch oven here as well) with nonstick cooking spray, set aside.?

?In a large mixing bowl, toss cooked, drained pasta and cubed turkey breast and set aside.

? In a large sauce pan, melt butter. Add garlic and Italian seasoning and saute until garlic is tender. Add Wondra flour and whisk together.?

?Add milk slowly, and stirring constantly over medium heat, add cheeses.? Continue whisking until sauce thickens, about 5-8 minutes.?

Remove from heat and pour sauce over pasta and turkey mixture.? Add salt and pepper to taste and mix well.

Pour into prepared baking dish, and sprinkle panko crumbs evenly over the surface.

Bake uncovered for 40 minutes, or until the top is slightly browned and bubbly.

Serves 12.

I hope you enjoy this dish as much as we do, it’s a winner in our house.

S.