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Get more for your money with these homemade frozen pasta meals! Made with a hearty meat and veggie sauce and freezer friendly!

Anyone here survive on those microwave dinners for awhile?

Pasta is a favorite food in our household. And those frozen dinner meals were such easy meals for me! You pay a dollar for the simple kinds, and like 2 minutes later you have a delicious pasta meal.

They’re good and all, but I wanted to create my own version- one that was healthier and had a lot more food in it!

How do you make the spaghetti sauce for the microwave pasta lunches?

I cooked one pound of ground turkey (Ground beef is fine too) with one cup of shredded carrots and a 6-ounce package of sliced mushrooms.

I absolutely love adding vegetables to pretty much anything, especially in sauces. Once those carrots were cooked down, I didn’t even notice them.

I also used a jar of spaghetti sauce to save time, but next time I might use my Slow Cooker Spaghetti Sauce!

Can pasta be frozen and reheated?

Absolutely! I do this all the time, especially with pasta freezer meals. If you can, try to undercook the pasta just slightly because microwaving/baking frozen pasta will help cook it the rest of the way.

What substitutes can I make?

There are tons of good substitute options for these pasta dinners, depending on your needs! Here are some examples:

• Meat: Use shredded chicken breasts instead. Or to make this a vegetarian meal, omit the meat and use extra vegetables, like mushrooms.
• Cheese: Use Parmesan cheese instead of mozzarella, or omit the cheese to make this dairy-free.
• Pasta: Penne pasta works just fine, as well as rotini. I’m sure other styles of pasta would freeze just as well.
• Pasta Sauce: You can use a jarred marinara sauce, or even a jar of Alfredo sauce. You can also make your own spaghetti sauce using cans of tomato sauce and other spices.

Is this cheaper than buying store-bought meals?

This is seriously a great option for those wanting to eat healthier and save money.

Let’s do the math for a minute. I’m using the Main Street Kitchen Ziti with Meat Sauce frozen meal as an example, found at Wal Mart for 97 cents. It has meat sauce and cheese, just like mine.

Breaking down my cost, for 5 homemade bowls:

• 9 ounces pasta: $.75
• 1 pound ground turkey: $3.00
• 1 jar spaghetti sauce: $2.00
• Carrots: $.20
• Mushrooms: $1.39
• Mozzarella cheese: $1.00

Cost per bowl: $1.66

So technically, mine is more expensive. However, look at how much you get in my container. It’s a LOT more than what you’d find in a 97-cent meal, plus you know exactly what’s in it. AND you get the added vegetables, so extra nutrition!

It doesn’t take a lot of time to put these together. Maybe a little effort, but the end result is worth it.

Do you serve anything with these pasta bowls?

I served mine with some frozen broccoli and homemade Jalapeno Cheese Bread, but you could probably just eat your pasta bowl by itself depending on your calorie needs. For me, broccoli is the perfect side dish for pasta. They just go so well together!

I may have to make up more of these soon. They’re such an easy lunch to meal prep and grab and go!

Want to see the other recipes in this series? Check out my 4 Weeks to Fill Your Freezer page!