Pasta Primavera and OK Go

With my head hung low, I confess that I did not go to Zumba last night :( Instead I cooked and ate to my heart’s content. Some days I get bit by the hungry bug and can’t fight it. Having had leftovers the past two days, I was itching for something new. In the battle between food versus exercise, food wins!

And even better, Stewart made burgers on the grill! I contributed roasted potatoes and spinach salad as the two side dishes. It’s always nice when you have a friend/spouse/roommate to cook meals with. And it’s even better if they clean the kitchen afterwards ; ) To me that’s the worst part about cooking. You spend all this time preparing a meal, dirtying up dishes and counter tops, only to turn around and clean it all. This explains why every now and again, there are dirty dishes sitting in my sink from the night before.

Last week I made Giada De Laurentiis’ recipe for pasta primavera. YUM. I love pasta salads, so this recipe was right up my alley. Pasta primavera has all these wonderful baked vegetables which create the seasoning for the pasta – plus a little salt and pepper. All the bright colors from the carrots, zucchini, squash, and bell peppers make a great presentation and taste delicious. I’ll definitely make this dish again.

Today’s beat is brought to you by OK Go! I like this video, and the splashes of paint color mirror the different colored veggies in the pasta primavera. Apart from the blue; there’s no blue in this pasta. Stay with me people…




Friday is less than 24 hours away! What are your plans for the weekend? With rave reviews surrounding the movie Inception, it’s on my to do list. Back in the day Leonardo DiCaprio (or as I liked to call him, Leo) was my teenage crush. Some may call it an obsession, but I prefer the term crush. Dinner for Shmucks also comes out tomorrow, and I want to see that. Which movie should I see first? I need some help making a decision.

Giada’s Pasta Primavera:


Ingredients


• 3 carrots, peeled and cut into thin strips


• 2 medium zucchini or 1 large zucchini, cut into thin strips


• 2 yellow squash, cut into thin strips


• 1 onion, thinly sliced


• 1 yellow bell pepper, cut into thin strips


• 1 red bell pepper, cut into thin strips


• 1/4 cup olive oil


• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper


• 1 tablespoon dried Italian herbs or herbes de Provence


• 1 pound farfalle (bowtie pasta)


• 15 cherry tomatoes, halved


• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan


Directions


Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.


On a large heavy baking sheet, toss all of the vegetables with the oil, salt, pepper, and dried herbs to coat. Transfer half of the vegetable mixture to another heavy large baking sheet and arrange evenly over the baking sheets. Bake until the carrots are tender and the vegetables begin to brown, stirring after the first 10 minutes, about 20 minutes total.


Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until al dente, tender but still firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid.


Toss the pasta with the vegetable mixtures in a large bowl to combine. Toss with the cherry tomatoes and enough reserved cooking liquid to moisten. Season the pasta with salt and pepper, to taste. Sprinkle with the Parmesan and serve immediately.