Bow ties with Veggie Cutouts

One of my favorite cookbooks growing up, ...well, make that 'ever'... is the Disney Family Cookbook! Its not only yummy (and adorable!) recipes, but they're also recipes made to try to interest kids in cooking. I seriously recommend it. :)
Ive been looking around for a yummy recipe to make with squash and zucchini.... not only because I like it and my lovely friend Tannie gave us some form her garden, but also because it needed t be something yummy that I made with them so as to help convince my veggie-hating-husband that he likes them too. I kept coming back to this recipe(which Ive always wanted to make -probably mostly because its the cover picture and is so cute!) so I decided this was it.
....Not only did we all (including Addie) like it, but it was super easy and really quick! -which is always a big plus right?! :)
**I couldn't find a picture online, and I didn't take one of the meal I made because we didn't have all the ingredients so it wasn't as 'pretty' as the photo in the book -though it was still just as yummy! The only photo I could find to use (for now) is a picture of the cover of the book. Doesn't show it too well, but you get the idea right?

Want to try it? Here's what you need:

Ingredients:
2-3 cups vegetable cutouts (carrots, zucchini, yellow squash, red & green peppers, etc)
*the picture shows cute little 'cutouts' of veggies in shapes, but we just did the basic chopping veggies into bite sized pieces ... also, I didn't measure by cups, I just added 1 squash 1 zucchini, etc...
1 pound bow tie pasta, cooked (*we just used Penne because that's what I already had -and again, just 'dumped' a good amount in, didn't measure an actual pound)
2 Tbsp Olive oil
1/3 cup ground almonds (*we didn't have any and it was still good without it)
1/3 cup milk
3 crushed garlic cloves (again, I didn't have at the moment so improvised with garlic powder/salt)
1/2 tsp salt
black pepper
Parmesan cheese

Directions:
To make cutouts, slice the vegetables into 1/8 or 1/4"thicknesses, and cut into shapes with tiny cutters (cut from the fleshy side) .... OR, just be boring like me and chop your veggies into basic bite sized pieces. Set aside.
While the pasta is cooking, heat 1 Tbsp Olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Saute the vegetables for 3-4 minutes.
Remove vegetables and add the remaining olive oil and the almonds. Stir until lightly browned. (*again, we didn't have the almonds, so I just left the veggies int he frying pan and added the rest of the ingredients).
Return the vegetables to the pan and add the milk, garlic, salt, and pepper to taste. Cook for 1-2 minutes.
Drain pasta, and toss it with the vegetable mix in a large bowl. Serve with Parmesan if desired. (which we did).

It took like 10 minutes total, and was not only yummy, but a success in getting the picky husband (probably 'kids' in your case) to eat their veggies! *wink*

Pesto Pasta Salad

** From Rachael Ray's show 5-29-09

Ingredients:
1 pound penne pasta
1/2 cup (about a handful) pistachios, or any nut you really like, toasted
1/2 cup packed basil
1/2 cup packed mint
1 cup packed flat-leaf parsley
1 clove garlic, grated
Salt and ground black pepper
1/2 cup EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 cup Parmigiano Reggiano
2 pints multi-colored cherry tomatoes

Directions:

Place a large pot of water over high heat and bring up to a boil to cook the pasta. Once at a boil, add some salt and the pasta and cook until al dente, according to package directions. Drain pasta thoroughly and cool.
While the pasta is working, add the toasted pistachios, basil, mint, parsley, garlic, salt and ground black pepper to a food processor. Pulse until finely chopped. Stream in 1/2 cup EVOO, pulse until combined, transfer into a large mixing bowl and stir in the Parmigiano Reggiano. Reserve.

To slice the tomatoes, place 2 container lids of the same size on the counter with the lip side up. Sit as many tomatoes that fit comfortably into the surface of the lid and place the other lid, lip side down, on top of the tomatoes. Press firmly, not enough to bruise the tomatoes, then gently glide your knife in between the two lids to cut the tomatoes in half precisely and in no time! Add your sliced tomatoes to the pesto bowl along with the cooled pasta, toss together and serve.

Whole Wheat Pasta Mixed w/ Arugula, Onions, & Tomatoes

**Another recipe from NieNie's 'CuisineNie'

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 large onions, halved and thinly sliced (4 cups)
Coarse salt and ground pepper
12 ounces plum tomatoes, cored and diced (about 2 cups)
3/4 cup lentils, picked over and rinsed
12 ounces whole wheat pasta
1 bunch (8 ounces) arugula, stemmed and coarsely chopped
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving (optional)

Directions:
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add onions and 1/2 teaspoon salt; cover, and cook until onions wilt, about 20 minutes. Uncover; raise heat to medium. Cook, stirring often, until onions are dark brown, 20 to 25 minutes more.
Add 1/4 cup water; stir to loosen any browned bits from pan. Stir in tomatoes; remove from heat.
Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, cover lentils with water by 1 inch. Bring to a simmer. Cover; cook until lentils are tender but still holding their shape, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain; stir into onion mixture. Season with salt and pepper.
Cook pasta in a pot of salted water until al dente. Reserve 1 cup pasta water; drain pasta, and return to pot.
Add lentil mixture, arugula, cheese, and reserved pasta water; toss. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with more cheese, if desired.

Herbed Whole Wheat Pasta w/ Lemon Butter

**I got this one from NieNie's food blog 'CuisineNie'.

Ingredients:
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1/2 pound whole wheat pasta
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh herbs, such as parsley, tarragon, and chives
crumbled feta

Directions:
In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta until al dente according to package instructions. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup pasta water. Return pasta to pot.
Stir in butter, lemon zest, juice, and herbs; season with salt and pepper. Add some of the reserved pasta water to adjust consistency, if needed. Top with crumbled feta.

Simple Pasta & Meatballs

(I promise that's just liquid from the sauce under the meatballs...lol they really ARE cooked all the way through!)

We just make a basic pasta and sauce and then added the easy meatballs. ...We think they turned out really good... I'm not a big meatball fan in general, but I liked them, ....and Dan really liked them, so it was a big hit. I especially liked that it was easy and quick! That's always a big hit at our house! :)

The Pasta: For the pasta, we usually just use whatever pasta noodles we have around the house, and I usually make the sauce by 'tossing random stuff in' (example: basic tomato sauce in a can spiced all sorts of awesome by whatever I thought sounded good that night). So, just make whatever pasta you like, and 'experiment' making your sauce, or take the easy route and buy some pre-made pasta sauce in a jar.

Meatballs:
I got the recipe from my new friend, "The Biggest Loser Family Cookbook" (which I recommend if you're like us and need good ideas for 'budget-friendly healthy meals' ...I bought mine at Amazon.com, so that's where I linked the title too). The meatball recipe is actually titled 'New Favorite Meatballs'... but that sounded too cheesy so I just call them 'simple'. :) So here's the recipe with my comments:

Ingredients:
Olive Oil (**the book recommends for most their recipes that you keep your olive oil in a spray bottle and use it that way... for this one I was lazy and just used our regular pan cooking spray)
2 egg whites
1/2 cup cooking oats
1/4 cup fat-free milk
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh parsley (**was good, but somehow I think you'll survive without it if you'd prefer)
1 tablespoon dried minced onion
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4+ teaspoon of salt (** I wrote the + because both Dan and I commented that they could use more salt, but again, its from a 'healthy' book, so less is probably better... but just keep that in mind if you're not planning on eating them all covered in sauce like I do...)
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (**again, something I'm sure you could live without, and we didn't have any so we went without... however, -I have a weird obsession with cinnamon and paprika-, so I tossed in a pinch of paprika 'just because'... we liked it)
1 pound extra lean ground beef
**The next time I made them I added some paprika and other misc spices, and increased the salt just a little bit and they were WAY good! :)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Lightly coat a non-stick pan (we used cookie sheet) with olive oil (we used regular cooking spray).In a medium bowl, using a fork, mix together egg whites, oats, and milk until well combined.
Add the parsley, onion, oregano, garlic powder, salt, and crushed red pepper flakes and mix well.
Mix in beef (with hands is easiest so Dan did this part because I have a raw meat phobia!).
Then roll into (about 32) uniform meatballs... about 1 1/4" in diameter it says (Dan just used his hands, but you could use spoons or a small ice cream scoop if you want to go all fancy). Arrange balls, not touching, on your greased pan. Bake for 7-10 minutes, or until no longer pink inside. (took us a almost 11 minutes).