Latino Pasta Creation

Today for lunch I wanted to use the fresh cilantro growing in our garden and thought to make a latino version of the Menus 4 Moms recipe, Tex-Mex Pasta (scroll down to Tuesday's menu).  Here's what I did:

4 cups dry whole wheat macaroni

1 pound 90% lean ground beef

1 can green chiles (4 oz)

1 can diced tomatoes (14.5 oz)

1/3 green bell pepper

1/4 onion

1 tsp white sugar

2 cups niblet corn

1 garlic clove

spices: cilantro, cumin, chili powder, cayenne pepper, black pepper & salt

I browned the meat together with the onion and green pepper while the pasta was cooking.  After browning the meat I added all the other ingredients and simmered until most of the remaining juices had been absorbed by the pasta.

As prepared above an 8 oz. serving = 258 calories and

a 12 oz. serving = 387 calories.

-------

I would have preferred to add some lime juice for that authentic latino flavor, but alas I can hope for next time.  I did not add any cheddar cheese, which would have added a lot of flavor, because I'm trying to keep the calorie content low.  This would go great with homemade, not fried, beans (pintos thoroughly cooked in the crock pot, then spun in the food processor with salt and pepper) or chips and salsa.

If you want to further cut the caloric intake, you can use less niblet corn or switch to enriched white pasta.

Yum, yum.