Monday, October 12, 2009

Veggie Pasta Concoction

One organic grab-bag + one refrigerator gone bad = a tasty experiment!

2 leeks, sliced from bottom to top of light green (no dark green)
2 yellow squash, sliced
1 ripe tomato, seeded and chopped
fresh spinach leaves (quantity was what hadn't spoiled from one bunch, but could have used more)
2 large cloves garlic, pressed
3-4 Tbsp. butter

Put a little bit of the butter in the bottom of a 1.5 qt. casserole dish to keep from sticking. Layer leeks, spinach, garlic, tomato and squash in dish and add the rest of the butter on top. Sprinkle with salt if desired, and any other herbs you might have on hand. (I didn't have any fresh basil, but I think it would have been really good...)

Cover and bake for 45 minutes at 350 degrees, or until the veggies are soft as you like them. Mine were a little too soft, but they still tasted good.

While the veggies are baking, cook 1 package of rice pasta spirals. Then, sautee some mushrooms (I had about six or eight left) in a little butter, then pour a cup of tomato juice and some Italian seasoning/basil over them and simmer until ready to serve. You could use some store bought marinara sauce for this, but I was using up stuff in the refrig....

When the pasta is done, mix with veggies, and sauce then serve with slices of mozzarella cheese over the top. Makes 4-6 servings, depending on how hungry you are. :)