Dressed-Up Pastas for a Meatless Monday Dinner
A guaranteed family favorite, pasta is an easy, economical meal that feeds a crowd. Tonight, instead of resorting to traditional spaghetti with simple tomato sauce, try experimenting with oddly shaped noodles, such as orecchiette, and new, creative sauce ingredients, like panko and broccoli rabe, that will add exciting, flavorful flair to your pasta bowl. Find a few of our favorite dressed-up pasta recipes below, each meatless and ready to eat in less than 40 minutes.
Celebrate in-season cauliflower by cooking up Food Network Magazine’s veggie-packed Cauliflower-Onion Linguine (pictured above), made with sweet fried onions, creamy Parmesan cheese and a sprinkling of red pepper flakes for a touch of heat. Crunchy pine nuts and crispy panko breadcrumbs add texture to this hearty bowl.
Though there’s no denying that classic basil pesto is wonderfully light and perfectly fragrant, it can be difficult — in fact, almost impossible — to find quality fresh basil in the middle of winter. Anne Burrell solves the pesto problem by preparing Orecchiette With Broccoli Rabe Pesto from Food Network Magazine. This dish is every bit as nutty, cheesy and green as the original but is made with broccoli rabe, a classic Italian green, instead. Before tossing these turtle shell-shaped noodles with the broccoli rabe-pistachio mixture, Anne mixes smooth ricotta cheese in the sauce, adding a delicate but rich taste and consistency.
Ellie Krieger’s bright and colorful Fettuccine With Creamy Red Pepper-Feta Sauce combines garlic and onions, store-bought roasted red peppers and tangy feta cheese to create a silky sauce that perfectly coats each whole-wheat noodle. Be sure to cook with vegetable stock instead of chicken to maintain a meat-free meal.
Meatless Monday, an international movement, encourages people everywhere to cut meat one day a week for personal and planetary health. Browse more meat-free recipes.
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