Pasta Primavera

I've been trying to plan at least 3-4 meatless recipes a week so we can focus on getting all our veggies and more "clean" eating. Also, I recently watched Food, Inc. so I've been having a harder time eating meat and processed foods. (I still do, just not when I'm thinking about the movie...)

Last night I made Pasta Primavera, which I adapted from a recipe posted on This Week For Dinner. It was really tasty and I wanted to share. I can't wait to make it in the summer when I can get most of the ingredients from my own garden!

Ingredients:
5-6 cloves of garlic
2 tsp olive oil
3 cups chopped tomatoes
1/4 cup white grape juice (the recipe called for white wine, but I don't keep that on hand. I'm sure you could probably use chicken stock as another alternative)
1/2 cup basil leaves (I actually forgot this and it was still really good)
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
2 small carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch matchsticks
1 red bell pepper cut into 2-inch matchsticks
1 generous handful of sugar snap peas, cut in half
1 generous handful off green beans, cut into 2-inch chunks
salt and pepper to taste
1 pound farfalle pasta
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (or you can use Pecorino)
(these are the ingredients I used, you can also add any number of additional vegetables... asparagus, snow peas, zucchini, green peas, etc.)

image via This Week For Dinner

Directions:
Bring a pot of water to boil. Meanwhile, saute the garlic and oil in a saucepan for about 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, grape juice and salt and cook on medium heat for 5 minutes. Add the basil and red onions, cover, remove from heat.

When the water is boiling, blanch the vegetables. Put the carrots in first. After one minute add the remaining vegetables. Cook for another minute or two and then lift them out with a slotted spoon (or colander if you're fancy like that). Reserve the pot of boiling water and add the pasta. Cook until al dente.

Stir the drained veggies into the tomato sauce. Add salt and pepper, cover, and set aside. Drain the pasta, reserving 1/4 cup of the cooking water. Toss the pasta with the reserved water and 3 tablespoons of the grated cheese. Finally, top with the tomato-veggie sauce. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan and serve immediately.

Yum!

two years

From Scratch

I have to share my internet find of the day. Spencer and I always talk and dream about building furniture. I love knowing that something is solid, made of real wood, and built with love. After my adventure in construction last year, I feel a little more comfortable and knowledgeable in working with wood and tools. Which is why I was so excited to find Knock Off Wood. It's a completely amazing site full of plans for knock-off furniture from all the (overpriced) favorites - Pottery Barn, West Elm, Land of Nod. I seriously can't wait to get started.

2009 In Review

It's become sort of a tradition to review each year with some random lists. Here goes:

Best Things 2009:
1. Buying a house that we love
2. Taking a family trip (Evans) to Yellowstone and the Tetons
3. Weekend jaunts to Colorado, Oregon and Moab
4. Running my first half marathon
5. Helping my business grow
6. Growing my first real garden
7. Adding a cute kitten to the family

Not So Amazing Things 2009:
1. Losing a few key clients on the freelance side of things
2. A few house problems (thankfully solved) - termites, broken water valve, etc.
3. Some things just not working out as I had hoped

Places I visited in 2009:
1. Yellowstone
2. The Grand Tetons
3. Moab, UT
4. Portland, OR and The Oregon Coast
5. Loveland/Colorado Springs, CO

Concerts I attended in 2009:
Honestly, I can't think of any. Wow. Seriously?

Realizations of 2009:
1. Sometimes even despite your best efforts, you just can't please everyone
2. Losing a client is not always a bad thing
3. LOST is one of the best shows on television and I'm kind of sad that we're gearing up for the final season. I watched seasons 1-5 this year and everything since then has been more or less a disappointment.
4. Michael Cera is not really an actor. He's the same in everything, which I'm pretty sure is himself and not even a character. Despite this, I still enjoy some/most (not sure) of his movies/tv.