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Monday, April 11, 2011

Meatless Monday: Penne in Fresh Tomato Sauce

Today I made some whole wheat penne pasta with a sauce made from 2 garden fresh tomatoes (thanks Gina), onions, garlic and yellow pepper. All the veggies were chopped into small bits and sauteed in olive oil, then I skinned and chopped the tomatoes and put them into the pot with a generous amount of salt, to flavor them and to help them break down. Then I added 2 heaping tsp of dried italian herbs. I let all of that simmer on low as the water came to a boil in my stock pot for the penne and added a small can of plain tomato sauce (I didn't have enough fresh tomatoes!). I tried the Barilla brand of whole wheat penne for the first time and it was pretty good, if a little starchy tasting. It takes some getting used to whole wheat pastas at first but we have been eating them for years now. When I first made the switch I only served whole wheat pasta under very hearty bolognese sauces because it hid the flavor a bit better, but now we are used to them and I can make a lighter, even primavera style sauce for it. I steamed some fresh green beans and dressed them with butter, salt, pepper and some fresh parmesan and called it a night.

Here's the menu for the week:

Monday: Penne Pasta with sauteed green beans
Tuesday: Slow cooker Chicken Cacciatore over spinach
Wednesday: Cheesy cornmeal waffles and chili
Thursday: Pork loin with mashed potatoes and cooked cinnamon apples
Friday: Fish! From the fish guy!
Saturday: Hamburgers on the grill
Sunday: Lemon roast chicken, salad, and fresh bread

Tuesday night's dinner has to be a slow cooker meal since I will be at a school board meeting and my husband will be coaching our older daughter at softball. I adore slow cookers for that convenience. You don't have to even be home to have a meal ready to go. Maybe I should make Tuesdays a regular slow cooker feature?

2 comments:

  1. Oh yes! She's long overdue for an ode. (Stepford Wife is my crockpot in case anyone is wondering.)

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