Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Simple. Delicious. CHEAP!


Rotini with Broccoli Ricotta
America’s Healthy Cooking Copyright 2004

12 ounces dried rotini or other corkscrew-shaped pasta I used Smart Taste pasta
2 tablespoons olive oil
5 green onions, thinly sliced
1 pound broccoli flowerets, cut into bite-size pieces
1 ½ cups part-skim ricotta cheese a 15-ounce container is perfect
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Coarsely ground black pepper

1. Bring 12 cups water to a boil in a 5- to 6- quart pan over medium-high heat. Stir in pasta and cook just until tender to bite (8 to 10 minutes); or cook according to package directions. Meanwhile, heat oil in wide nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add broccoli and continue to cook, stirring, until bright green (about 3 minutes). Pour in ¼ cup water and bring to a boil; reduce heat, cover and simmer until broccoli is tender-crisp (about 5 minutes).
2. Drain pasta well, reserving ¼ cup of the water. Place in a serving bowl. Add vegetables and ricotta. Mix thoroughly but gently; if too dry, stir in enough of the reserved water to moisten. Offer Parmesan and pepper to add to taste.

Makes 4 servings.

Per serving: 540 calories, 25g protein, 75g carbs, 16g total fat, 29mg chol, 149mg sodium
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I made this for my lunch this week and it was fantastic. I happen to like this sort of thing - I've always loved noodles and cottage cheese. I used Smart Taste pasta for more fiber. I separated it into 5 servings instead of 4 which brought the calorie count down. I'm not sure I trust the nutritional info though - 25 grams of protein seems awfully high although maybe I'm wrong. I just did a quick Google and saw that there were 3 grams of protein in a cup of broccoli which surprised me. This would make a great inexpensive meatless dinner.

This reheats surprisingly well. I thought it might be dry but it actually wasn't.

Well the baby's sick so we'll see how the rest of the week goes.

Question of the Day: Have you added more meatless meals to your menu in order to save money or eat healthier?

2 comments:

Noel said...

This looks super yummy. I would use cottage cheese though instead of ricotta cheese. I'm not fond of ricotta cheese.

Anonymous said...

This looks great, filled with lots of guilt and extra time working out but yummy lol
I think I will add chicken to it when I make it some rainy day..thanks for the recipe. I enjoy your blog!
Betty