vorace.: Pasta Primavera

Felice primavera! Happy spring!

Summer is my absolute favorite season, but spring is a very close second. Once I see those spring time daffodils popping up, I know warmer weather is right around the corner! Woot woot!

Spring time also represents a time of celebration in my life, as April marks the month in which I first became a vegetarian. This year it will be 20 YEARS since I stopped eating meat. Whew! That is a long time and whew, does that make me feel old! To celebrate my 20 meat-free years, I want to take the month of April to post some power house vegetarian recipes. Recipes that taste great, are hearty and filling, and that truly celebrate vegetables in all their nutritional glory! Check in throughout the month for those recipes.

I figured a pasta primavera recipe would be perfect for my first post of the spring season. Primavera means spring in Italian, and this recipe is chock full of beautiful spring colors and fresh veggies. From the arugula pesto (that I've been dying to make since this recipe), to the steamed green veggies, to the beautifully bright roasted veggies, this recipe is a spring time show stopper! This isn't necessarily a traditional primavera recipe (check out my fav Giada recipe here), but it's the vorace. way!

I recently discovered brown rice pasta at my local Trader Joe's (ingredients: brown rice, water. Awesome!) and decided to give it a shot. It's really good y'all! I've been off white flour and whole wheat for about seven months now and have really missed pasta. I'm part Italian, after all! Brown rice has been my go-to carb, so brown rice pasta is right up my alley. You can obviously make this recipe with any kind of pasta you want, but I highly recommend giving the brown rice pasta a try.

Speaking of carbs and being a vegetarian, one thing I've discovered on my recent health journey, is that us veggies need to be cognizant of consuming complete proteins. I never knew about 'complete proteins' prior to my first visit to my holistic doc back in August of last year, and my first thought when she brought it up, was "oh crap. I've been doing this all wrong!" Now I make a conscious effort to eat protein whenever I eat a carb. So in this recipe you will notice the presence of some white beans. The brown rice pasta is the carb and the beans are the plant protein. Pasta + beans = a complete protein. And just like that, we have a healthy vegetarian :-)

One thing before we get started. My friend, Alexis, recently made my Granola Crusted French Toast recipe for her hubby's birthday. Look what a great job she did:

Looks delicious Alexis! Thanks for sharing!

And Happy Birthday, Rob!

OK, let's get spring-y!

vorace.'s Pasta Primavera

Servings: 4

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cooking time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 orange bell pepper, chopped
1/4 sweet onion, chopped
12 ounces grape tomatoes
4 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
2 teaspoons dried Italian herbs mix
1/8 teaspoon pink Himalayan sea salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper (FCBP)
1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes
8 ounces broccolini, stalks cut into thirds (one third being the florets)
6 ounces asparagus, stalks cut into thirds
3 ounces sugar snap peas
1 can white beans
8 oz brown rice fusilli or rigatoni pasta (or a mix of both, like I did!)
1/2 cup pre-made/store bought artichoke antipasto (I found this at Trader Joe's, but it's just canned artichokes, oil, vinegar, and salt and then it's minced if you want to make it at home)
1 handful grated pecorino romano cheese
1/4 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

Pesto:
3 cups baby arugula leaves
1/4 cup grated pecorino romano cheese
5 large basil leaves
1/4 cup pinoli (pine nuts) + a handful for garnish
1 handful parsley leaves
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon FCBP
1/4 cup EVOO

Preheat your oven to 400 Fahrenheit.

Add the grape tomatoes, chopped bell peppers, and onion to a medium or large sized baking dish.

Drizzle the veggies with 2 teaspoons EVOO and sprinkle with the Italian herbs, 1/4 teaspoon FCBP, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and the pinch of crushed red pepper flakes.

Stir.

Place the veggies in the oven to roast for 45 minutes, stirring every 10-15 minutes.

While the veggies are roasting, make the rest of the meal. Start with the pesto.

Begin by toasting the pinoli. Place the nuts on a baking sheet for a toaster oven, or you could toast them in a pan on the stove over medium heat.

Toast until they turn golden brown - for about two minutes in the toaster oven - and then remove them from the heat. Remember to set aside a handful for garnish, so don't add that to the food processor.

Place all of the pesto ingredients EXCEPT the oil in a food processor. (Forgot to get a pic of this! Sorry!)

Turn on the food processor and once the ingredients are combined into a paste, drizzle in the EVOO. Leave it on for about 15 seconds and then turn off the food processor.

Set aside.

When the roasting veggies have about 15 minutes left to cook (so, at your 30 minute mark), start the water boiling on the stove for your pasta.

Place a medium sized pot on the stove over high heat. When it comes to a boil, add the pasta to the water along with a pinch of salt. Set a timer for the amount of time listed as the cooking time on your package instructions (my pasta takes about 10 minutes to get al dente).

Make sure to stir the pasta every couple of minutes.

While the pasta is boiling, steam your veggies.

Fill a medium sized pan with high sides about one inch full with water. Set the pan on the stove over medium heat.

Divide your green veggies into two piles: pile 1 - broccolini stems and sugar snap peas. Pile 2 - asparagus and broccolini florets.

Once the water comes to a simmer, add the broccoli stems and sugar snap peas.

Sprinkle with a pinch of salt, place a lid on the pan, and allow to simmer for five minutes.

Once the stems & peas have cooked for five minutes, add the asparagus and broccoli florets. Replace the lid.

When the asparagus and florets have been in the pan for about three minutes, add the white beans.

Replace the lid and allow to cook for another three minutes. Then turn off the burner.

Keep the pan on the burner while you assemble the rest of your meal.

By now the veggies in the oven should be soft and juicy. Remove them from the oven and set aside.

The pasta should be ready as well. Use a strainer to drain the pasta water into the sink, shake off the pasta slightly (we want some of the liquid still on the pasta to help the pesto stick, so don't worry if it's a little wet) and then return the pasta to the pot in which you cooked it.

Now you can strain the green veggies. Remove the lid from the pan and dump the veggies into the same strainer you used for the pasta. Shake the water from the veggies.

Set up an assembly line to put together your dish. Arrange the pasta, pesto, artichoke antipasto, roasted veggies, and green veggies in one area.

Add the roasted veggies and green veggies to the pot the pasta is in and stir.