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a classic that works

Baked pasta with ground beef and zucchini

An everyday dish for 2, ready in 45 minutes, around $2.58 a serving. People actually plan it with Popotam, and it's in season in October.

45mintotal
≈ $2.58a serving
972kcalper serving
52gof protein
In season in OctoberFreezes well
Let's cook
Baked pasta with ground beef and zucchini, a serving idea
AI-generated image · Serving idea

Step-by-step recipe

check things off as you go

  1. Preheat the oven

    Turn the oven on to 200 °C, convection if you have it.

  2. Prep the veggies

    Peel and finely chop the onion. Wash the zucchini and cut them into small 1 cm cubes.

  3. Cook the pasta

    Bring a saucepan of salted water to a boil and cook the 250 g of elbow pasta 2 min less than the package says, so about 7 min. Drain.

    Tip · Pull the pasta a bit before the suggested time, it finishes cooking in the sauce and the oven without going mushy.

  4. Brown the beef and veggies

    Heat 0.5 tbsp of olive oil in the skillet over medium-high heat and sauté the onion for 3 min. Add the 250 g of ground beef and break it up, then the zucchini. Cook 8 to 10 min until there's no pink left in the meat, then salt and pepper.

    Tip · Let the zucchini brown a little without stirring too much so they give off less water, otherwise the gratin will be runny. Serve it with a green salad.

  5. Make the sauce

    Off the heat, stir the 10 cl of crème fraîche, the 10 cl of whole milk and the pinch of nutmeg into the skillet. Add the drained pasta and mix well.

  6. Fill the dish

    Pour everything into the baking dish and spread it out. Sprinkle with the 50 g of shredded mozzarella.

  7. Bake until golden

    Bake at 200 °C until the top is golden and it's bubbling around the edges. Let it rest 2 min before serving.

And there you go, it's readyCheck off every step to celebrate.

The questions you're asking

short answers, numbers you can check

How many calories in a serving?

One serving has about 972 kcal. 42% comes from carbs, 21% from protein and 35% from fat.

101 gCarbs
52 gProtein
38 gFat
Per serving (the dish for 2, divided by 2)
Energy972 kcal
Protein51.9 g
Carbs101.1 g
of which sugars11.8 g
Fat38 g
of which saturated fat21.7 g
Fiber6 g
Salt0.5 g

Worked out ingredient by ingredient with the ANSES Ciqual 2025 table, never written by an AI. It's an estimate: veggie sizes and brands make the numbers vary.

How much does it cost?

About $2.58 a serving, adding up the average prices of the ingredients you need to buy.

≈ $5.15for 2 people
≈ $2.58a serving

Pantry salt, oil and spices aren't counted. Your store and your brands will move the total, but the ballpark is right.

How long does it keep?

2 days in the fridge, in a closed container, once cooled within two hours. And it freezes really well.

2 daysin the fridge
Very wellin the freezer, thaw it in the fridge the day before

Times Popotam uses for meal prep, based on ANSES guidance, rounded down. The details: how long cooked dishes keep.

and the rest of the week?

Popotam plans your whole week

Lunch and dinner, with dishes like this one, based on your tastes, your time and your budget. The grocery list is sorted by aisle. Free, no account.

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