Fresh Vegetable Pasta

We had a simple, yet fabulous dinner last night of pasta with fresh vegetables.  My recipe yielded two large servings, which I immediately regretted.  This dish “tastes like more” as we often say at our house.  My rationale at the time was that I did not want to have leftovers because I wanted the pasta and squash warm, and my tomatoes room temp.  Since this dish does not have a sauce, it may not reheat well in the oven or on the stove top (I don’t use a microwave anymore.)  So be warned, you may want to bump up the recipe a bit, even if you don’t want leftovers, you may want more in the here and now. 

I really wanted to use vegetables from my Scott Arbor organic vegetable program.  I had loads of fresh squash and tomatoes, and had bought a few ears of fresh corn over the weekend.  I also had fresh organic basil, which I was too lazy to put in because of the late hour, but it would be a nice addition.  My final dish is a combination of a couple Rachael Ray recipes. 

Ingredients

1 small zucchini

1 small yellow squash

2 small tomatoes

2 ears corn

½ 8-oz box spiral pasta

¼ cup Parmesan cheese

2-3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

1.  Cook pasta in salted water.  When done, drain and return to pot. 

2.  Cut zucchini and yellow squash into thin slices.  Sauté in olive oil, 2-3 minutes in batches in a hot skillet. 

3.  Cut corn off cob.  Sear in hot skillet, about 30-60 seconds. 

4.  Peel and dice tomatoes. 

5.  Combine pasta, zucchini, yellow squash, corn, and tomatoes.  Add a few tablespoons chopped fresh basil if you have it. 

6.  Serve with fresh grated Parmesan. 




Pappardelle Pasta with Corn, Squash, Onion and Mushroom

For this version, I used Bertolli Alfredo Sauce and fresh corn, tomatoes, yellow squash, baby bella mushrooms, and purple onions 

 

 

Caprese Salad

 

This year my household decided to participate in the Scott Arbor local organic produce program.  We’ve gotten fresh basil almost every week, and had a short run of small but terrific, flavorful tomatoes.  I decided to do my take on Caprese Salad.  You know, the tomato and mozzarella “salad”, with basil and balsamic vinegar. 

I’ve really loved making fresh pesto with the basil, so decided to use pesto rather than just sprinkle with basil leaves or chopped basil.  I also thought it would be a nice touch to make a balsamic reduction, instead of just drizzling with balsamic vinegar.  Since my chunk of mozzarella was fairly large, and my tomatoes very small, I decided to chop both!  I told you it was “my take” on Caprese Salad. 

For the pesto, I put about a half cup of almonds in the food processor and processed until fairly small.  Then I added about a half cup of grated Asiago cheese, and my basil, which was probably about a cup lightly packed, and processed.  Then I drizzled in olive oil until my pesto was like a spread.  I have also made pesto with cashews and Parmesan cheese, and I have heard others use walnuts. 

The balsamic reduction was super easy.  I put one cup of balsamic vinegar in a small skillet, and heated on low until it was reduced by about half. 

Finally, I mixed my chopped mozzarella and tomatoes, topped with basil, then topped with my balsamic reduction.  This Caprese Salad was absolutely fabulous!  I sure wish the tomatoes were still producing, but alas the Texas heat is not kind to tomatoes.  I haven’t found Texas to have the great tasting super ripe tomatoes that I always enjoyed in the Carolinas- except those few weeks of small tomatoes from Scott Arbor.  At least I can enjoy my fresh pesto and pasta each week.