Zucchini and Ricotta Shells

A summery pasta dish!

Sometimes pasta feels a little heavy in the warm summer months, unless it's in pasta salad form. Instead of tomato sauce, this recipe relies on the zesty flavor of lemon. Canadian Living magazine suggests pairing the pasta with a Sauvingnon Blanc or an Italian Soave.

Although this dish could stand alone, we think it works best as an accompaniment to chicken or fish.

The recipe comes from the May 2010 issue of Canadian Living, and can also be found online. It's from their "quick and easy" series - and it lives up to that designation. Admittedly, it's not spectacular, but it is a quick, easy, and pretty tasty.

Zucchini and Ricotta Shells

Makes 4 servings

4 cups medium or large shell pasta

1/2 cup ricotta

2 teaspoons grated lemon rind

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

2 zucchini

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons fresh mint

2 tablespoons fresh chopped onion

2 tablespoons lemon juice

• Cook pasta according to package. Drain, but save 1/2 cup of the cooking water.
• In large bowl, toss together pasta, ricotta, lemon rind, salt, pepper, and 1/4 cup of the reserved pasta water.
• Quarter the zucchini, lengthwise. Cut away the core and cut (with a bit of diagonal flair) into slices.
• Heat oil in frying pan over medium-high heat. Sauté zucchini for about 5 minutes, until tender.
• Add zucchini to pasta, along with mint, green onion, and lemon juice. Use the remaining pasta water to achieve desired creaminess. Toss together to coat pasta.

Just wait until the end of the summertime

when zucchini overtakes gardens...

Sliced and ready to sauté

Fresh mint is incredibly fragrant

Next step: toss!

Enjoy!

Penne with Asparagus Pesto

Lisa and I were on our own for a week, left to forage through a near-empty-fridge, slopping together PB&J... kidding. Left to our own devices we cooked up a storm!

Dinners were a little tough because of how late Amy gets home, but we did a lot of making ahead. This penne recipe was perfect for that!

Rita Demontis is a Toronto Sun columnist who offers up an abundance of recipes to Torontonians. In early May, just as asparagus was coming into season, she started "stalking" the green vegetable. Did you know it has no fat and is high in fibre? Neither did we. Thanks, Rita. And thanks for our dinner, detailed below.

Penne with Asparagus Pesto (from the May 1, 2010 Toronto Sun)

1 pound asparagus

1/2 cup mint leaves

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup walnut pieces

1 tablespoon grated lemon rind

1 tablespoon lemon juice

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/4 cup vegetable or chicken broth

2 tablespoons olive oil

4 cups whole wheat penne

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

• Wash asparagus, trim, and remove the tips. Set the tips aside - they'll be added at the very end.
• Cut asparagus stalks into 1-inch pieces. You should end up with just over 2 cups. Cook the stalks in boiling water for 3 - 5 minutes. Drain well, and cool by rinsing under cold water.
• Place asparagus stalks and mint leaves in food processor. Turn on the food processor and gradually add garlic.
• Add walnuts, lemon rind, lemon juice, and salt and pepper to food processor. Coarsely chop. Add oil and broth. Process until blended, but leave walnuts a little chunky.
• You can press pause here! If this is a make-ahead meal, stop here, refrigerate, and finish up tomorrow.
• Cook penne according to package directions. Add the asparagus tips for the last 2 minutes. Drain pasta and return to pot.
• Add pesto - start by adding 1/3 of the mix, and work your way up until desired flavor is achieved.
• Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

'Tis the season for these bright green stalks.

Mint leaves, ready to be turned into paste.

Almost pesto.

From here, just toss and serve!

Vegetable Lasagna

We had left-over ricotta cheese to use up... and it turned into this. Funny how one ingredient can spur a dish that includes everything but the kitchen sink!

This lasagna is a hearty pasta dish. It's definitely rooted in veggies, but to add a little protein kick we added half a pound of ground beef.

The base for this recipe came from AllRecipes - but feel free to get creative, just like we did.

1 package lasagna noodles

1 pound fresh mushrooms (we didn't add these... Lisa isn't a fan)

3/4 cup chopped green bell pepper

3/4 cup chopped onion

3 cloves garlic, minced (helpful video - but don't worry if you aren't that fancy - we aren't)

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 jars pasta sauce (this is a great way to switch up the flavor of the lasagna! Spicy? Mushroom-y? Plain tomato?)

2 teaspoons dried basil

1 container part-skim ricotta cheese (we subbed in a little cottage cheese instead)

4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

2 eggs

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Optional: 1/2 pound ground beef

Note: go crazy with the vegetables! We added zucchini, red pepper, and brussel spouts (Amy added those in. And didn't tell anyone. No one noticed!).

• Check your lasagna noodle box. Amy boiled water and then mom saved the day and noted they were NO cook noodles. You assemble the lasagna with uncooked pasta.
• If you have to cook your noodles, do so according to the directions on the box. It probably says to boil them for about 10 minutes for al dente noodles.
• Heat oil in large pot. Add vegetables and cook. Stir in pasta sauce and basil, and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes. The sauce should thicken a little.
• If you are adding ground beef, brown it first. Heat pan over medium heat, add beef, mash/stir until all pink disappears. Add to tomato sauce before assembling lasagna in baking dish.
• Combine ricotta, 1/2 the mozzarella cheese, and eggs.
• Time to assemble! Spread some tomato sauce in the bottom of a 9 x 13 greased baking dish. Layer lasagna noodles, cheese mix, sauce, and Parmesan cheese. Repeat this pattern 2 or 3 times. Top with remaining 2 cups of mozzarella cheese.
• Bake in 350 F oven for 40 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes before serving.

Look at all those vegetables!

If you look hard enough, you might spot a brussel sprout.

Out of the Oven

Pumpkin Ravioli

Continuing on the pumpkin theme (which might have gone a little too far with this one)...

Pumpkin Ravioli!

Okay, the Ravioli seemed a little iffy. And why is it red? There were two options on the AllRecipes website and the one I chose (Amy is taking full responsibility for this) said upfront that it had an "unusual taste."

There was a lot of hype leading up to it... I said I was going to make it on a Wednesday, but then not all the ingredients were on-hand. I had to work Thursday. Friday I tried to squeeze it in before jetting off to the restaurant job, but assembling the pieces took longer than I'd anticipated. We had to wait until Saturday to eat them!

Recipe (modified from the original):

1 cup ricotta cheese

1/2 cup cream cheese

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1/2 cup pumpkin pie filling

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup tomato paste

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 eggs

2 tablespoons water

• Mix the cheese, pumpkin, garlic, and salt. This will be the filling - set it aside for now.
• Combine the flour and salt. Push toward the edges of the bowl, creating a "well" in the center. Blend the tomato paste, oil, and eggs, and pour into the center of the bowl with flour. Stir with a fork, gradually bringing in the flour mixture from the edges of the bowl. If dough is too dry, mix in a little water (the recipe said up to 2 tablespoons, but it was more like 5...)
• Knead for 5 minutes on floured cloth-covered surface, adding flour if dough is too sticky.
• Cover dough and let it rest for 5 minutes. Divide in 4 parts. Roll out dough sections one at at time into rectangles (about 12 x 10 inches was the recommended size, but mine looked more like large blobs).
• Drop pumpkin filling by the teaspoon onto half the rectangle, leaving an inch or two between rows.
• Moisten the edges of the dough and the spaces between the filling piles. Fold the other half of the dough over the pumpkin mixture and press down around the filling, so that little filling pockets are created.
• Cut between the rows and seal the edges of the ravioli pieces with a fork. Seal them well, or they will explode/leak when you cook them!
• Place ravioli on a towel and let stand for about 30 minutes, until dry. Turn them once so that both sides dry out.
• Cook ravioli in boiling water until tender (about 10 minutes).
• Drain and serve with sauce.

Make sure to seal the edges!

Sauce:

1/2 cup pumpkin pie filling

1 cup heavy cream

1/4 Romano cheese

Sage leaves (or a little bit of dried sage)

Salt & pepper to taste

• Heat pumpkin and cream in a small saucepan. Add remaining ingredients.
• Let sauce simmer for a few minutes until it thickens.

I'm glad I tried this recipe, but I'm not sure it will get made again... It was definitely unique. The sauce was a little too sweet and the ravioli a little too doughy. It was a good exercise it pasta-making though, something that we haven't attempted before.