I have collected many cookbooks, magazines and clipped recipes. I still look for cookbooks to buy or get from the Library! This recipe is from a Library book- Easy Everyday Vegetarian Cookbook. It is written or put together by Taste of Home. I have had several rounds of subscriptions to the Taste of Home magazine throughout my life. Many of the magazines are in my collection. It’s kind of fun because the recipes come from regular (not professional chefs or TV cooks) people around the States.
This vegetarian cookbook has a meat option for several of the recipes and the ingredients are common or easy to find at the grocery store. The Pasta with Veggies is one that I made with meat. I thought that I would give my husband a break from all the meatless meals that I make on Sundays!
I didn’t make too many changes in the recipe except the pasta and herbs. I made this with fresh herbs instead of dried because I still had herbs from my garden. Another change that I made was the pasta. I used bow tie pasta instead of the penne, but almost any pasta would be good. I also used more of the veggies then listed because I didn’t want a 1/2 or zucchini or carrot left behind. The amounts I used are in parenthesis. The original recipe comes from Vickie Spoerie, Carmel IN. Thank you Vickie!
Penne (Pasta) with Veggies & Black Beans
Serves 2 or 4 with extra veggies, beans and meat
3/4 C. uncooked pasta
1/3 C. (whole small) Zucchini, sliced
1/3 C. (whole) carrot, sliced
4 (8 oz.) fresh mushrooms, sliced
1/2 (whole) small onion, chopped
1/2 (whole) small green pepper, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 tsp. each dried basil, oregano and thyme (fresh herbs to taste or favorite dried herbs)
2 tsp. (1 T.) olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 C. (2 C. cooked beans) canned black beans drained and rinsed
(3 links turkey sausage, casings removed- meat option)
¼ C. (omitted) chopped seeded tomato
1 T. shredded Parmesan cheese (any hard cheese)
2 tsp. (eyeball amount) minced fresh parsley
Cook pasta as package directs, remove about a cup of pasta water before its drained. Keep the pasta warm.
In a large skillet, heat olive oil. Add onions and carrots. Sauté until tender. I put in a couple tablespoons of water and cover the skillet until the water evaporated. When the carrot and onion are tender, add mushrooms, green pepper and garlic. Cook until the mushrooms release most of their liquid. Stir in zucchini, beans and herbs. Push the veggies to the side and add the turkey sausage (or if not using meat combine the veggies with the pasta). Break up the turkey sausage and cook until done. Combine the cooked pasta and pasta water if needed with the veggies and meat. Lower the heat and let everything warm together. Sprinkle with cheese and parsley. Serve with extra cheese and top with chopped tomato is desired. It seems like it might be hard with all of the ingredients, but once everything was chopped it came together quickly. We really enjoyed this recipe.
Minnesota Food Lover 