Friday, September 21, 2012

Recipe: Pasta with Garlic and Oil- Farm Fresh Style

Pasta with Garlic and Oil- Farm Fresh Style
Sometimes, you just want a light vegan Italian inspired meal and this is a quick and easy recipe to satisfy that need. What's great about it is you can prepare the garlic and oil sauce before work, which makes the dish tastier and quicker on prep time at night. You can also substitute any seasonal green for the broccoli and enjoy this all year round. Just so happens the farmers market had some nice broccoli and the last of the seasonal heirloom tomatoes. I would also suggest substituting sun-dried tomatoes during winter...
You can also use fresh herbs for this dish but I used dry in this instance. Next time I make it with fresh herbs, I will update the recipe.
Now let's get to it.

Serves 3-4
Ingredients:
1/4c olive oil
1 head garlic finely chopped
1t red pepper flakes (to your taste)
1/2t parsley
1t basil
1/2t oregano
1/2t salt 
1/2t pepper
3/4lb pasta thick spaghetti+
1 vegetable bouillon cube
1 head broccoli cut into florets 
1/2 heirloom tomato chopped
package faux chicken optional (I used Gardein)+









1. In a small bowl mix olive oil, garlic, red pepper flakes, parsley, basil, oregano, salt, and pepper. Set aside to let flavor develop.*
2. Bring water to a boil. 
       a. Add bouillon cube and mix until dissolved in water. 
       b. Add pasta when water reaches boil and cook as instructed by 
            your pasta box. Cook al dente because your pasta will go back into the 
            heat.
       c. Add broccoli to water when there is 4 minutes left.
       d. When water is done boiling, strain pasta and broccoli with large strainer 
           and reserve about 1/2 cup of pasta water.
3. While water is boiling, put garlic and oil sauce into a sauce pan and heat on low for 7 minutes.
4. When oil is finely heated, add faux chicken and saute until browned to your liking (I like it crispy so I cook for about 7 additional minutes)
5. Add pasta and broccoli to the garlic and oil pan. Add reserved pasta water. Combine and heat through for 5 additional minutes. 
6. Salt and pepper to your liking.
7. Serve dish with heirloom tomatoes.

+ Items that can be removed or are gluten-free modifiable
*Like I said, the earlier you make this sauce the tastier the end product. If you come home from work and want to relax, push yourself to make this prior to relaxing, take a break and then continue on with the recipe.

1 comment:

  1. It's true, this is a simple, go to recipe when you want to have something light and healthy. I like the idea of the thick spaghetti. I make something similar. Thanks for the tip on making the sauce earlier! All the best with the new blog...looking forward to more yummy recipes and info. Yay!

    ReplyDelete