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Expert Tip

There is no "magic score" you should aim for when buying food. We at NuVal believe a balanced diet consists of foods from all categories and can be found all over the NuVal scale. However, the more high-scoring items you eat, the more nutrition you will receive. NuVal gives you the information to make an informed decision.

Food Connector

Nutrition By The Numbers

Test your knowledge.

 

 

Trade Up with NuVal scores for a more nutritious recipe!

 

Our NuVal customer manager, and resident blogger Melissa has created a healthy twist on a classic dish with fresh ingredients that score high on the NuVal Scale.

 

"Grandma’s Casserole” is a baked pasta casserole, complete with tons of vegetables, tomatoes and mozzarella cheese. 

 

How does Grandma’s Casserole stack up on the NuVal scale? If you choose the top-scoring items for each ingredient in the recipe, it does very well.

 

 
       
 

The butter is the only item that does not score so well. Land o' Lakes Sweet Cream butter scores a 2.

The score for whole canned tomatoes can vary.  Melissa chose one of the highest scoring brands: Price Chopper Whole Tomatoes with No Salt Added with a score of 82.

 

Tomato sauce is another product that can vary greatly.  There are some very high-scoring varieties and some very low-scoring brands. One of the best highest scoring is Pastene’s “The Chateau” Marinara Sauce, which gets a 66 on the NuVal scale.

 

For the pasta, Melissa chose one of her favorite high-scoring brands:  Barilla Plus Elbows.  They get an amazing 91.

 

For the mozzarella cheese, she used Sorrento’s Part-Skim mozzarella with a score of 22.

 

Other than the cheese and the butter, both of which are under control, portion-wise, this is a very high-scoring, nutritious meal that your whole family will love!

 

Grandma’s Casserole Ingredients:  Serves 8

 

1 Tbsp butter

1 cup onion, chopped

1 large red pepper, chopped

1 cup celery, chopped

10 ounces ground turkey, 93% lean (just cut the standard 1.25 pound package in half & freeze the leftovers)

1 tsp Kosher salt

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp garlic powder

2 cups chopped mushrooms

14.5 ounce can whole tomatoes, drained & coarsley chopped

2 cups tomato sauce

2 cups water

1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella

1 3/4 cups uncooked elbow macaroni

 

Directions:

  • In a skillet, saute onion, red pepper and celery in butter
  • Add ground turkey and brown, breaking it up with a spoon
  • Add mushrooms, salt, pepper, oregano, garlic powder and mushrooms
  • Coarsely chop the tomatoes
  • Add tomatoes, tomato sauce and water to the pan. Simmer, covered for 20 minutes.
  • Spoon enough mixture to cover the bottom of a 9″ X 13″ pan. Layer with uncooked elbows.
  • Spoon remaining sauce on top. Sprinkle with cheese
  • Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Remove and let stand for 45 minutes
  • Serve hot and enjoy!