Reviewed: May 6, 2012

This was a delicious and easy to make meal. I read other reviews and wondered if it would be bland, but I thought it was perfect. The only thing I did different was I used a 16 oz can of tomato sauce, and I used fresh spinach that I dampened, covered, and microwaved for about 45 seconds. Thanks for the recipe!

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Reviewer:

Mindymom

Reviewed: Jul. 28, 2011

This recipe is very good as a base. I added lots of other ingredients. I omitted the tomato sauce and added extra picante. I added a can of chili beans with the liquid. I used macaroni noodles since thats all I had. In the ground beef I added onion and lots of minced garlic (i dont measure but about a Tbsp) and lots of black pepper. In the white sauce I used fresh basil, oregono and flat leaf parsley and about a tsp of garlic. It gave it an unexpected italian twist that I loved. My 7,6 and 4 year old all loved it. Like I said before you can do a lot to this recipe to make it your own.

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Reviewer:

Katrina F.

Reviewed: Jan. 5, 2011

Pretty darn good! Family didn't like it as much but I thought it was great! I think it was the spinach they didn't like much plus I used whole wheat penne. ;) I did add red, yellow and orange pepper to the meat mixture since I had them on hand. YUM!

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Reviewer:

Daisy K

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Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Wichita, Kansas, USA

Living In: Valley Center, Kansas, USA

Reviewed: Sep. 12, 2010

Followed recipe and it was a little bland for a "Southwest" dish. Next time I think I will replace the spinach with green chili to give it more flavor.

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Reviewer:

amysad

Reviewed: Sep. 1, 2010

My boys usually pick out all of the green things in our food, but I tried this and they loved it. My first grader wants to "marry it." I think the picante flavors cover the bitterness of the spinach.

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Reviewer:

motherofmonkeys

Reviewed: Aug. 15, 2010

This recipe was absolutely delicious! It even satisfied my finicky little brother. Of course I did add a few touches of my own. First of all, I didn't add the tomato sauce, or the entire can of tomato paste, I was afraid the pasta would turn out too sour. Also, I added some fresh basil leaves teh teh cream cheese and spinach mixture. Baking the olives turned out delicious as well. This is really a great recipe for an easy family dinner.

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Reviewer:

shilpika554

Reviewed: Apr. 21, 2010

I really like this recipe and have made it several times; it's pretty much a Mexican ziti. I think that a full package of cream cheese is too much, it ends up taking over the dish. Perhaps that the amount of 'kick' other reviewers are complaining is lacking is due to the variety of picante sauces out there. If you uses a good salsa, this recipe turns out great.

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Reviewer:

SeReNdIpItY

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Scottsdale, Arizona, USA

Living In: Parker, Colorado, USA

Reviewed: Mar. 29, 2010

I thought this was alright. My 10 year old wasn't too impressed, but he doesn't like mexican food much. I would have to say that the prep time for me was closer to30 minutes.

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Reviewer:

Shelley

Reviewed: Feb. 26, 2010

This was excellent with lots of flavor!! It would be a great dish to serve families with children at a gathering. I used salsa instead of picante sauce and added cilantro and fresh squeezed lime for serving. What a great way to eat spinach without tasting it!

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Reviewer:

Karen

Reviewed: Sep. 16, 2009

My husband was gushing with compliments when I made this for dinner last night. I made a few slight alterations, I used a 13 oz box of Rotini, added half an onion while my meat was browning, and used salsa instead of tomato paste (I forgot that ingredient when I went shopping). Overall, it was delicious. I baked two 8x8 pans and put one in the freezer for a quick fix meal. I've already given this recipe to a handful of people I loved it so much.

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