Creamy Penne with Savory Vegetables

I wanted to come up with a healthy version of a savory and hearty pasta with vegetables and this one, I nailed.

Ingredients:
- 3/4 pound penne
- 3 cups frozen assorted vegetables, broccoli, carrots, snow peas, peppers, etc.
- 1/2 onion, chopped into large chunks
- 20 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- 2 boca burgers
- 1/2 teaspoon vegetable bullion cube
- water
- olive oil
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
- 1/4 cup of flour or thickener
- crushed red pepper flakes
- oregano
- salt
- pepper

To Make:
In a large pot, boil salted water and cook the pasta until it's al-dente, about 8-10 minutes for pene.

In the meantime, in a very large saute pan, drizzle olive oil and cook the onions and garlic about 5 minutes stirring occasionally. Season with salt. In the microwave, cook the boca burgers for 1 minute. Then, them in with the onions and garlic. Cover for the last 2 minutes.

Next, add the frozen veggies into the mix and season with 1/2 teaspoon of oregano. Then season with 1 teaspoon of salt, pepper, crushed red pepper flakes. Mix together. Add a tablespoon of olive oil. Cook on medium high heat for 8-9 minutes. Next, sprinkle the top with the flour or thickener.

Next, in 1/2 cup water, dissolve the bullion and add to the veggies. Mix together, creating a sauce. Cook the veggies another 3-4 minutes until they are tender yet still crunchy. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese and mix together. Add another 2 tablespoons of water if needed. Make sure the boca burgers are now mixed in and no longer whole, they should be in bite size chunks.

Drain the pasta and in a large mixing bowl, drizzle olive oil and toss in the pasta. Next toss the veggies in and mix together, adding another 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese.

Serve immediately.

Summer Spinach & Pepper Pasta

Nothing says SUMMER like a delicious fresh pasta dish complete with farmers market veggies! We found some interestingly colored peppers at the farmers market, (purple, white, light orange) and I decided to incorporate them into my pasta dish which turned out great. (The pictures don't capture the peppers very well, but it's because they are not as vibrant as we are used to with red peppers.) I also threw in some classic green peppers as well.


Summer Spinach & Pepper Pasta

Ingredients

- 1/4 pound ziti
- 1 onion, diced
- 1/2 green pepper diced
- 3 peppers, any variety (I used purple, white, light orange)
- 6 cloves peeled and minced garlic
- 2 handfuls of FRESH spinach
- 1 cup fresh (or frozen peas)
- 1/2 bag fiesta style veggies (with kidney beans and carrots)
- 5-6 Fresh Basil leaves
- 2 tsps feta cheese
- Light dusting of Parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons olive oil for sauteed

TO MAKE:
Pour your olive oil in your large skillet and add your onion, peppers and garlic. Start your large pot of water (for the pasta) and set on the stove on high COVERED. Keep your veggies on med. low heat. Lightly salt and pepper the top of the veggies.

Stir every few minutes. Once your water is boiling, pour in 1/4 cup salt into the boiling water then add your pasta. Ziti tends to stick so stir frequently. Ziti probably only needs about 7-8 minutes to cook. Drain your pasta (DO NOT RINSE WITH WATER)
Next add in your 1/2 bag of frozen veggies and peas and a tiny bit of extra oil to finish sauteing. Lightly salt and pepper the top. You can also add in some crushed red pepper also.

After your veggies are tender, NOT mushy (about 4-5 minutes) add in your fresh spinach and pasta and pour a little more olive oil on top to make stirring easier. Then add your feta and Parmesan cheese and stir a few times. Let this cook for about 2-3 minutes to heat the spinach... our intention is not to wilt the spinach, but just to heat it.

Turn off your stove, plate it up and DIG IN! YUM!!!

This serves 2-3 people.