One of my favorite dishes to have on hand in the spring during sport’s season or when my schedule seems busier than usual is Farmer’s Market Pasta! I can easily create a meal with this nourishing pasta dish by adding some grilled chicken or fish or grabbing a rotisserie chicken on the fly when time is tight. As a nutritionist, any opportunity to squeeze in more vegetables, is always viewed as a good thing! This pasta dish is full of brightly colored produce. I recently read a report that revealed only 2% of kids eat their fruit and veggie daily quota and most adults are not far behind. Don’t forget to eat your veggies every day!
How colorful do these veggies look? I happen to like bow tie pasta, and honestly am not a big fan of the taste of whole wheat pasta, so I up the fiber of this dish with the veggies. This recipe has 4 cups of cooked pasta and 8 cups of raw veggies!
I found these rice beans at whole foods this week and they looked too cute to pass up, so I thought I would add them to my pasta dish to add some fiber and protein.
I like making homemade salad dressings but for convenience sake I keep a couple bottles on hand. I love Brianna’s dressing. It tastes great and has real ingredients. This dressing works very nice in the Farmer’s Market Pasta. The taste of this French dressing makes me feel like I am back in Paris. Which by the way, is my most favorite place on earth.
Simply mix all the ingredients together and you have a great dish. Add the beans and you have a meal.
For easy access to your favorite herbs, why not create a planter like I have done and keep it on your kitchen counter or outside deck during the summer? Fresh herbs are a great way to add flavor without adding extra salt or unhealthy ingredients, plus they make your meal look and taste much better!
Here’s the recipe for you to try!
Colorful, nutritious and super tasty! We feast off it all week long. Add some grilled fish or chicken and your meal is good to go.
This recipe is not suitable for low FODMAP diet
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound box bow tie pasta
- 8 oz. sugar snap peas, ends trimmed cut in thirds
- 1 red, yellow, green pepper, seeded and diced
- 1 pint grape tomatoes cut in half
- ¾ cup carrots, sliced or grated
- ¼ cup Italian dressing or French Vinaigrette
- Fresh herbs for garnish makes it special: try 2 TB. Chopped parsley, chives, or basil
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to directions.
- Meanwhile, cut and chop vegetables (you can vary up the vegetables but you want about 8 cups total)
- Mix dressing with vegetables.
- Drain and rinse pasta and add to vegetables
- Garnish with your favorite fresh herb: chives, parsley, dill or basil
- Toss in a cup of canned beans or cooked beans, optional.
- You can up the protein (and calcium) further by adding ½ cup of feta, cheddar chunks, or mozzarella to this dish as well.