Organic meatless pasta recipe

Hi! Lately I've been craving somewhat light dishes that do not involve meat or heavy oils. I came across this recipe and fell in love with it. Major points go to the fact that the meal can be ready in under 20 minutes. And if you are like me and have long hours at work - this recipe is a true finding. 

The time saver for this go-to spring dish is cooking the vegetables with the pasta. It’s an easy technique that works with many veggies.

Ingredients

1 pinch table salt, for cooking pasta (or to taste)

8 oz uncooked linguini, or spaghetti

1 pound(s) uncooked asparagus, ends trimmed, sliced diagonally into 1-in pieces

3/4 cup(s) frozen green peas

3/4 cup(s) part-skim ricotta cheese

10 tsp grated Parmesan cheese, Parmigiano-Reggiano, divided

1 tsp olive oil, extra virgin

1 tsp minced garlic

1 tsp lemon zest, (or more to taste)

1/2 tsp table salt

1/8 tsp black pepper, freshly ground (or more to taste)

1/4 cup(s) fresh mint leaves, or basil, chopped

Instructions

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil; add pasta and cook until almost al dente, about 5 minutes. Add asparagus and peas and return to a boil; cook until pasta and vegetables are tender, about 4 minutes more. Drain pasta and vegetables, reserving 1 cup of cooking liquid; set aside.

2. In a serving bowl, combine ricotta, 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, oil, garlic, lemon zest, 1/2 teaspoon salt, pepper and 1/4 cup reserved cooking liquid.

3. Add pasta, vegetables and mint (or basil leaves) to bowl; toss to mix and coat, adding more cooking liquid if desired. Serve sprinkled with remaining 4 teaspoons Parmesan cheese and additional pepper and/or lemon zest, if desired. Yields about 1 1/4 cups per serving.

That's it!!! I hope you will try it and it will become a staple in your home cooked meals, just like it became in my house:)

Bye, bye

Warmly, Olha

P.S. I like my SanPellegrino with this meal. Perfect for true foodies :) 

www.sanpellegrino.com

Ricotta pancakes recipe - Ukrainian Sirniky

I'm back with another recipe. This time is it a sweet dessert. I remember eating these pancakes when  I was little and it is definitely on the list of my favorite desserts. 

Lets get started!!!

Ingredients You Will Need:

350 grams (0.77 lb)

1/4 cup of sugar ( you may use less, it's optional)

2 eggs

4 Tbsp of all purpose flour

This recipe is very easy, all you need to do now is mix all of your ingredients, mix should be nice a creamy without big clumps.

Then use frying pan and spatula. Put oil in the frying pan and with a spoon place the pancake mix in it, making little islands in the frying pan. I make my pancakes thin but big and round, that way they are cooked faster. I would say you only need to cook them for few minutes on each side. And it's done.

After they are ready you can use some powdered sugar or jam on them.

I eat mine with a side of fruit.

Enjoy!

XOXO, Olya

Pesto Pasta Recipe.

-Pesto anyone? 

-Yes, Please!!!

Here's my very easy and very yummy recipe !

Ingredients: 

1 box (13-16oz) of pasta (I used whole wheat)

2 cups of fresh basil leaves

4 cloves of garlic minced

1/2 cup parmesan cheese

1/2 or  3/4 cut of pine nuts (depends how much you like them)

1/4 cup olive oil

~

Ingredients to marinate the shrimp:

1 lb of large peeled shrimp

1/2 cup of balsamic vinegar

1/4 cup olive oil

6 garlic cloves minced

2 teaspoons of sweet dried basil

Directions.

1. Marinate the shrimp few hours before cooking the dish. I would say 1-2 hours should be fine. To marinate just combine all the shrimp marinate ingredients together, mix and store in the fridge for  1-2 hours. When ready to start cooking go to step 2.

2. Bring salted water to boil and put the pasta in to cook. Follow the instructions on the box for time.

3.  Put basil leaves, pine nuts, minced garlic, olive oil, and parmesan cheese into the blender and blend everything together until you get nice creamy mix. I left mine a little chunky because I really like pine nuts and wanted to leave them somewhat visible.

4. When pasta is done cooking, drain the water out. I left pasta in the same pot where it was cooking. Add pesto to the pot with pasta. Mix pasta with your pesto sauce well.

5. Marinated shrimp put on a skillet  and cook for few minutes. I poured some of the remaining marinate into the skillet too. Be careful not to overcook the shrimp. Few minutes on the skillet is enough. (Pink shrimp is the color of cooked shrimp)

6. At this point everything is ready. So you can either mix it all together or like I did I placed shrimp on the side. I also added some fresh mozzarella cheese on top of my pesto pasta, and added some tomatoes on the side. 

Try this recipe, and let me know how you like it!

It's very easy to make!

Bon Appetit!!!