One-Pot Pasta

One-Pot Pasta. Dinner where everything cooks all in one pot & is ready in 20 minutes. An easy weeknight meal with so many variations & a ton of veggies. Add this to your rotation tonight!

A few years back I tried the One-Pot Pasta recipe from Martha Stewart. The directions read basically to throw everything together in one pan, add enough liquid, and the pasta will cook while absorbing the liquid. Boom. Done. I tried it and I’m here to say that yes, cooking pasta is easy on it’s own, however, if I can add all the rest of my ingredients into one pot and call it dinner? Sign me up!

There are days I like to spend in the kitchen and cook to create different flavor combinations. And then there are days where I don’t want to cook at all! Anyone else out there feel the same way I do? Recently to help offset the ‘I have to cook every meal’ feeling I have been supporting local restaurants. Not only does that allow for me to ease up on the cooking, but it also allows for me to get creative in seeing what’s on the menus. You might call that a win win because I know I sure do!

Affordable & Sustainable: Plant Protein

Pasta is affordable. Food prices right now have gone up tremendously and I’m always looking for ways to make a cost-effective dish that can feed the whole family. While this may not feature an animal protein, you can always add that if you’d like, but I’d also like to challenge you to think outside the box and include a few meatless meals here and there. Not only because it’s helping you to save money, but it’s also heart healthier for you too!

With this pasta I’ll pair it with a nice salad on the side. I’ll either add in garbanzo beans and/or nuts/seeds for some additional protein. This dish is all plant protein, minus the parmesan cheese, and when you add it all up the meal has a sufficient amount of protein. Small changes can lead to big results. Knowing that it doesn’t mean you have to go vegan to reap the benefits of including more plants. Simply aim to cut back on your portions of animal protein, aim for a leaner cut (if you are eating animal protein), and always aim to include more plants. This one-pot pasta will help get you started!

Ingredients: One-Pot Pasta

1. Pasta – Using a whole wheat penne here, any shape will do, just pick your favorite. If you’re using whole spaghetti break it up so that it doesn’t all clump together and has the chance to cook evenly.
2. Parmesan: Cheese is added at the end and mixed in with the warm pasta. While I used parmesan here a goat cheese and/or feta (shoot even Burrata!) would go well also.
3. Low-Sodium Broth: Traditional pasta is cooked with just water and Martha used water in her recipe too. However, I chose to use some broth/stock to give it some additional flavor. Choose a low-sodium or a no-salt added option as the cheese will provide sodium.
4. Mushrooms – In Martha’s recipe she literally just dumps everything in the pot and lets it cook. This requires an extra-hands on step, but I think you’ll appreciate the mushrooms to be sauteed first vs just throwing them in.
5. Garlic– Is synonymous with pasta. Please don’t leave it out, simply make sure when you do add it in you allow it cook a little (so it doesn’t have too much bite) and watch it closely enough so that it doesn’t burn!
6. Kale – Any leafy green will do as an add-in to this dish. I used what I had on hand. Kale, swiss chard, collards, spinach. Depending on which green you add is when you would add it in to cook as they all require different cook times.
7. Extra-Virgin Olive Oil – Cooking mushrooms in butter is quite delicious, however, I opted for olive oil here to keep it more heart-healthy as I did add cheese. It tastes equally delicious. Promise.

How To Make One-Pot Pasta

Start with first sauteing your mushrooms and garlic. And from there add all the rest of the ingredients in. Let it simmer, absorb all the broth, and voila, dinner is served in less than 20 minutes. Meatless Monday dinner at its finest!

1. Sauté: Add 2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil to your sauté pan. Over medium heat, once warm, add your mushrooms to the pan and let them sauté for 6-8 minutes. Try not to stir too often so they’ll brown on both sides. Add the garlic in towards the end, so that it cooks but also doesn’t burn.
2. Add: in the pasta, kale, stock/broth, and pepper. If you’re using spinach, add it closer to the end as it doesn’t need much cook time. Go ahead and bring the mixture to a boil and let it cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring, so the pasta cooks. The pasta/noodles will absorb all the broth (or most of it – if there is a little left at the end and the pasta is cooked you can always strain it off). Remove the pot from the heat.
3. Stir: the parmesan cheese in and serve. Add a side salad to your meal and dinner is served!

OTHER QUICK DINNERS

• Sheet-Pan Gnocchi
• Hoisin Shrimp
• Sheet-Pan Shrimp
• Salmon in Parchment

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