Tonight's dish was discovered one very low ingredient night in the Thompson household during a time when my daughter Chase was going through a major potato kick. I opened the fridge and saw bunch of green beans, some leftover roasted potatoes and jar of homemade pesto. Trying to think quick on my feet, with very hungry kids starving after soccer practice, I decided I would try throwing these ingredients together with a little pasta. The verdict...my kids LOVED it! Who would have guessed?! Since then, recipe a tiny bit and ithe recipe has evolved a bit become a lunch and dinner staple. The greatest part is it's on the table in 20 minutes from start to finish. Depending on the size of your family, you may want to double the recipe to pack some for lunches the next day. This recipe is great served hot or cold and lends easily to substituting different vegetables. Our favorite (this week) is broccoli. Read below to see my time saving trick that will shave off a few steps, dishes and minutes from your total cooking time, This is such a versatile dish, and really just a base recipe, so feel free to get creative in making it your own. It would be great with sun dried tomatoes, olives and a sprinkle of pine nuts. I hope you enjoy!
Pesto & Potato Pasta (Serves 6)
Ingredients:
· 1 1b bow tie pasta
· 1 crown broccoli, stalks and florets cut into small pieces
· 1-1.5 cups pesto
· 2 cups fingerling or baby potatoes, cut in half
· 1 Tbsp olive oil
· Fresh herbs of choice (optional)
· Himalayan salt, to taste
Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
2) Boil large pot of water for cooking pasta
3) Toss potatoes in oil and spread on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with herbs and salt. Cook in oven 20 minutes.
4) In the meantime, add pasta to water once boiling. And set cooking timer for 6 minutes.
5) When time goes off at 6 minutes, add your cut broccoli to pot with the pasta and water. Set your cooking timer for an additional 5 minutes.
6) When time goes off, drain pasta and broccoli in a colander and then add back to the pot.
7) Remove potatoes from oven once finished cooking for 20 minutes.
8) Add potatoes to pasta and broccoli.
9) Add pesto to the pot and stir to combine.
10) Viola! Dinner Served!