Tuesday, February 7, 2017

Two Cheese Roasted Vegetable Fusilli - #EasyWeeknightDinners #MeatlessMonday

LESLIE BUDEWITZ: There’s saucy pasta, and there’s pasta with stuff in it. This is the latter. We enjoyed it tremendously, and it’s easy for a weeknight—about five minutes to chop the vegetables and twenty minutes to roast them, while you’re preparing the other ingredients and opening a little white wine. Because we don’t need to take this healthy eating thing too far, do we?

Next time we make this, we’ll try mixing the two cheeses and a little reserved pasta water with the fusilli to create a chunky-but-saucier mix, then add the vegetables. I think we'll enjoy it just as much!

Mission Impawsible (A Paws & Claws Mystery) by [Davis, Krista]We don’t often use whole wheat pasta, but I always enjoy it when we do. I think a sturdy pasta like amaranth would also be muy tastee.

And yes, I know it's Tuesday, but we made this on a Monday, so it still counts as #MeatlessMonday, if that's a thing to you!

Congratulations to our Krista Davis, whose latest Paws and Claws Mystery, MISSION IMPAWSIBLE, comes out today! 

Two Cheese Roasted Vegetable Fusilli

1 cup grape or cherry tomatoes, cut in half
2 medium or large zucchini, chopped
1 small or ½ large red onion, diced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
8 ounces whole wheat fusilli
1/4 cup grated Pecorino or Romano
½ cup ricotta (we use part-skim)
additional kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper
6-8 basil leaves, chiffonade (cut in ribbons)


Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Toss the tomatoes, squash, and onion with the olive oil and salt, and spread on a large pan. Roast 20 minutes, stirring once.

Cook the pasta and drain. In a large bowl, toss the pasta with the vegetable and cheeses. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with basil. Serve.

Serves 4-6.







Bon appetit!


From the cover of KILLING THYME (October 2016, in paperback, e-book, and audio---large print coming soon!): 

At Seattle Spice in the Pike Place Market, owner Pepper Reece is savoring her business success, but soon finds her plans disrupted by a killer…

Pepper Reece’s to-do list is longer than the shopping list for a five-course dinner, as she conjures up spice blends bursting with seasonal flavor, soothes nervous brides fretting over the gift registry, and crosses her fingers for a rave review from a sharp-tongued food critic. Add to the mix a welcome visit from her mother, Lena, and she’s got the perfect recipe for a busy summer garnished with a dash of fun. 

While browsing in the artists’ stalls, Pepper and Lena drool over stunning pottery made by a Market newcomer. But when Lena recognizes the potter, Bonnie Clay, as an old friend who disappeared years ago, the afternoon turns sour. To Pepper’s surprise, Bonnie seems intimately connected to her family’s past. after Bonnie is murdered only days later, Pepper is determined to uncover the truth. 

But as Pepper roots out long-buried secrets, will she be digging her own grave?


Leslie Budewitz is the author of the Food Lovers’ Village Mysteries and the Spice Shop Mysteries—and the first author to win Agatha Awards for both fiction and nonfiction. The 2015-16 president of Sisters in Crime, she lives in northwest Montana with her husband, a musician and doctor of natural medicine, and their cat Ruff, a cover model and avid bird-watcher.

Swing by my website  and join the mailing list for my seasonal newsletter. And join me on Facebookwhere I often share news of new books and giveaways from my cozy writer friends.

9 comments:

  1. I wonder if I can substitute a gluten free pasta...This looks good.

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    1. Oh, yes, I think so. Just use a short, sturdy shape to stand up to all those wonderful vegetables and the cheeses.

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  2. Definitely a winner!
    I'm notorious for my editorial nature (also know as OCD in some circles!).
    6-8 basil leaves, chiffonade (cute in ribbons)--I'm sure they are very cute, but I suspect you mean "cut".

    Sorry, I can't think of a smarty comment, but--"Seatson with salt and pepper."

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  3. Oh yum! Thanks for a healthy and delish dish, Leslie. Hugs. MJ/VA

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  4. It must be fate, I stopped by Trader Joe's on my way home and picked up more tomatoes and onions, I already had the other ingredients. Yay! I know what I'm having for dinner tomorrow. Thank you

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    1. Enjoy! I'll admit, I chose the recipe in part because I had half a container of ricotta as well as the tomatoes and onions, and was wondering what to do with it!

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  5. Oh that looks great. I will have to get the goods for it next week at big shopping day (monthly). Love the way it looks!

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    1. I'm a lousy photographer, but it's a great dish! Enjoy!

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