Baked Pasta Casserole

I really liked this recipe - my husband ate it but I don't know that he loved it. It was a bit too dry for his tastes but that could have been cooking error... and probably was. I added shredded chicken, plus I omitted the almonds because if I'd used them I wouldn't have had any for a work snack the next day!

Now, with that being said - I'll totally make this again but maybe throw in a little pasta water or broth before baking to add some moisture.

Baked Pasta Casserole (With Chicken)
Adapted From: 101 Cookbooks

Ingredients

extra-virgin olive oil

3/4 pound whole wheat pasta shells

sea salt

1 large yellow onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

4 cups well-chopped fresh spinach

1 1/2 cups sliced almonds, lightly toasted

zest of 2 lemons

8 ounces mozzerella, shredded or torn into small pieces

(I added 2 cups shredded chicken for a bit more protein)

Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Butter/oil a large casserole dish or baking pan - something roughly equivalent to 13x9-inch pan.
Boil the pasta in salted water per package instructions. Drain pasta, toss with a glug of olive oil. Set aside.
In the meantime, heat a bit of olive oil in a skillet over medium-high.

Saute the onions with a couple pinches of salt for a few minutes (or if you want a bit more depth of flavor until caramelized).

Stir in garlic.

Stir in spinach.

Cook for just about 20 seconds, until the spinach collapses a bit.

Remove from heat and stir in 1 cup of the almonds and 1/2 of the zest.

Add to pasta and stir and stir - mixing extremely well, a minute or so.
Now sprinkle the bottom of baking dish with the rest of the zest.

Add a layer of the pasta to the bottom of the baking pan, now sprinkle with some of the cheese, add more pasta, then more cheese.

Finish with a layer of cheese.

Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes or until cheese on top is bubbly and melty.

Serve sprinkled with the remaining almonds.

Serves 8.