Veggie Pasta

This recipe is Indianized version of pasta cooked with vegetables & masala.

Pasta is one of the dishes that is liked by all (from kids to adults). If you like pasta but not the cheese & the regular sauce that comes with it, then this is the recipe for you - Yes, a lighter & healthier version of pasta.

You can toss in any vegetables of your choice (try to add veggies that don't get mushy while cooking). I used carrots, beans, onions, tomatoes, mint leaves & bell pepper. I should say, adding mint leaves elevated the taste of this dish to the next level. For this recipe, I used fusili/rotini pasta. You can also experiment it with any pasta of your choice.

If you think your kids are not getting enough veggies, then this is one of the tastiest (what a kid wants) & healthiest (what a mom wants) recipes that can be prepared in minutes. I am sure your kids will love you more for this recipe. This recipe will be equally loved by your big kids too (I am sure you would've got that one correct :)). 

Ingredients

Uncooked pasta - 1 cup

Carrots / Beans / Bell pepper - 1 cup (cut into 1 inch pieces)
(NOTE: I used red bell pepper)

Tomatoes - 2 nos (cut into 1 inch pieces)

Olive oil - 2 tsp (It is okay to use vegetable oil)

Salt - To taste

Mustard seeds - 1/4 tsp (To give an Indian touch :))

Chilli powder - 1/2 tsp (Indian flavor)

For Masala:

Medium sized onion - 1/2

Tomatoes - 2

Mint leaves - Few

Green chillies - 2

Method:

1) Take a pan, and toss all the vegetables (under For Masala) and saute them until soft. Now blend them using a mixer. Keep it aside.

2) In another pan, take some olive oil and splutter mustard seeds. After that, add cut tomatoes and cook them until tender. Then add the other cut vegetables and cook with chilli powder & salt (add only half the salt, as we will be adding salt while cooking pasta too) until soft. Now, add the ground paste to the cooked vegetables. Let it cook together until the flavor of the paste & salt is infused into vegetables.

3) Take a big cooking pot / vessel, add enough water to cover the entire pasta that you are cooking and boil on high (You need to have rolling boil before adding pasta). Now, add salt followed by pasta. Gently stir the pasta every now & then (just to make sure they don't stick with each other) and cook until pasta is done. Alternatively, you can use a timer and simply follow the cooking time given in the box that your pasta came in. Once pasta is done, drain them using a colander.

Steps 2) & 3) should be done parallely, so that as soon as veggies are cooked & ready, you can transfer the cooked/drained pasta to the veggies. Now, leave it on the heat for 2-3 mins and serve it hot.

Tips:

• Don't add in your pasta too early. Wait until the water comes to a boil. Otherwise, pasta tends to get sticky/mushy.