Turkey Meatball Pasta Bake with Hidden Spinach

Ingredients

• 500 g turkey mince
• 2 garlic cloves, finely grated
• 2 tsp dried oregano, divided
• ½ tsp fennel seeds, lightly crushed
• ½ tsp dried chilli flakes (optional; skip for younger kids)
• 30 g Parmesan, finely grated
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 320 g rigatoni or penne
• 1 large onion, finely diced
• 3 garlic cloves, finely sliced
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp tomato purée
• 2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
• 120 g baby spinach
• 250 g mozzarella, torn
• 40 g Parmesan, finely grated
• 1 lemon, zest and juice
• Fine salt and black pepper
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 30 g parmesan, finely grated

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 220°C fan. Get the water bubbling steadily before adding anything. Season the pasta itself.
2. Tip the turkey mince into a bowl with the grated garlic, oregano, crushed fennel seeds, chilli flakes and Parmesan. Season generously with salt and black pepper; turkey is lean and bland without it; then roll into 20 walnut-sized meatballs.
3. Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a large ovenproof frying pan or wide casserole over a high heat until it shimmers. Brown the meatballs in two batches, 5–6 minutes per batch, turning until deep golden on all sides. Crowd them in all at once and the pan cools, water comes out, and you've boiled them instead of browning them. Transfer to a plate.
4. Reduce the heat to medium and add 1 tbsp olive oil to the same pan. Fry the diced onion for 5 minutes, scraping up the fond as it softens, until translucent and just starting to catch at the edges.
5. Add the sliced garlic and tomato purée and cook for 60 seconds, stirring constantly, until the garlic is fragrant and pale gold and the purée has darkened a shade.
6. Pour in both tins of chopped tomatoes along with a splash of water swirled through the empty tins, then add the dried oregano. Season well and simmer for 8 minutes, stirring now and again, until the sauce thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon.
7. Meanwhile, cook the pasta in the salted boiling water for 2 minutes less than the packet says; it'll finish cooking in the oven. Drain, keeping a mugful of the starchy water back.
8. Fold the spinach into the tomato sauce in two handfuls, stirring for 1–2 minutes until fully wilted and disappeared into the red. Stir in a small squeeze of lemon if you have one to hand; the acid lifts the tomatoes; then taste.
9. Add the drained pasta to the sauce with a splash of pasta water and toss to coat every tube. Nestle the browned meatballs back into the pan, pushing them halfway down into the sauce.
10. Scatter the torn mozzarella and grated Parmesan evenly over the top. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until the cheese is bubbling and the centre of a meatball reaches 75°C for 30 seconds.
11. Bring the pan straight to the table.