I've been slowly working my way out of my cooking rut...sleep deprivation (cumulatively over the past three years) combined with a busy schedule leaves me in no mood to spend much time on dinner. The good news is that moods like this force me to find more relatively easy, sorta fast-to-prepare recipes (no matter what, when cooking with fresh veggies, there's always peeling/chopping to deal with...maybe I can hire a sous chef? :) ). I found this recipe and modified it as usual, to create this delish dinner.
It was supposed to be a one-pot, boil everything all together deal, but I decided that taking one extra step to saute the veggies would make it less mushy and more tasty. I was right. Yum! We all loved it, the girls devoured it, there were barely any leftovers. Here's Lainey making her "mmmm!" face.
Creamy Veggie Pasta (vegetable measurements are approximates because I adjusted as I went; you may need to adjust slightly to your taste!)
2 small zucchini, sliced thin
1 small summer squash, sliced
2 cups mushrooms, sliced
2 large handfuls spinach
1/2 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 c milk
1/2 c parmesan cheese
2 tbsp butter
salt and pepper to taste
6-12 oz. macaroni (I like to use less pasta than recipes usually call for, or more veggies--my goal is to make the meal equal parts pasta and vegetables)
1. Cook the pasta.
2. While pasta is cooking, saute veggies in olive oil. I started with onions, then added garlic, mushrooms, zucchini, and squash. Once they were all tender, I tossed in the spinach to wilt.
3. In a large bowl, mix milk, parmesan cheese, butter, salt and pepper.
4. Drain the pasta and immediately pour into serving bowl. Toss to coat all with cream mixture.
This is another recipe that would work with just about any veggies you have on hand. Even frozen vegetables would work, just do as the original recipe suggested and toss it right in your pasta pot.
I hesitate to ask due to an historical lack of responses, but...I know that mostly anyone who reads this blog is a friend. So please, if you have a fast(ish), easy(ish) recipe that you love, please share it!
I made your butternut squash soup the other day (thinking of you!) and had forgotten how easy it was to make. Soup and salad is always one of my favorite fall dinners and my kids will now eat anything (even lettuce) with a touch of poppyseed dressing on it. Unfortunately, they both told me NO to the squash and I pulled out a can of soup for them that they devoured-but I loved the butternut!
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorite quick standbys are flatbread pizzas with hummus, feta cheese, olives, peppers, tomatoes, etc! Messy for the kids=but yummy and quick and easy!
I so want to make the rhubarb cookies! This pasta looks sooo good, creamy and yet full of yummy veggies. Our quick meals are open faced sandwiches, toasted; pasta salad with roasted onions, red peppers, goat cheese, any veggies we have on hand and goat cheese. In the fall, speghetti pie is sometimes fun too!
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