Vegetable Garden Pasta

Vegetable Garden Pasta gets its name from the raw veggies that star in the dish. The pasta sauce takes less than 20 minutes so that the tomatoes and carrots retain their vitamins and minerals. A quick, covered simmer allows the vegetables to soften in a shorter amount of time than tomato sauce recipes that stew uncovered for several hours. Give the sauce a quick mash, to get a smoother consistency.

The spinach and red onion are left raw and tossed into the dish, adding color and that “put hair on your chest” onion goodness. It’s been said that raw onions and garlic contain compounds that fend off the cold and flu. Carrots add vitamin A, along with a gentle sweetness to cut the tomatoes’ acidity.

Vegetable Garden Pasta – serves 2 – 4

1 T olive oil
1/4 C chopped yellow onion
2 cloves garlic, smashed and finely diced or pressed
1/4 C carrots, finely chopped
4 medium tomatoes, diced
2 T tomato paste
1 C chicken or vegetable stock
1 T chopped red onion
1/2 C baby spinach
1/2 lb. dry pasta
2-4 T Parmesan cheese

Heat olive oil in a 2 quart saucepan over a medium flame. Add onions and cook until transparent, but not browned. Add garlic and carrots and cook for one minute. Add tomatoes, tomato paste and stock. Stir until well combined. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer 10 minutes.

Cook pasta as instructed. Drain and pour into a covered casserole dish. Toss with onions and spinach, cover to allow both vegetables to steam slightly by the pasta’s heat.

Pour sauce over pasta, toss well and serve with grated Parmesan cheese.

Ingredient origins: Olive oil – Spain; Garlic – New Jersey; Onions, Carrots, Tomatoes – New Hampshire; Spinach – Maine; Pasta and cheese – Italy