As parents, we all struggle to balance our time. Whether we’re going to soccer practice after school, working full time, or, like me, just trying to keep the house clean with a tornado of a three-year-old running around, our time is limited & precious.
I love cooking for my family and do so almost every night of the week. I love experimenting with new dishes as well as making old favorites, but sometimes I just don’t have the time or energy to make a big production out of dinner. &I’m not alone- in a recent survey, 58% of parents said their lives were more hectic than just one year ago. So what do you do on those nights when you need a quick meal solution? Personally, I always make pasta!
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Pasta is such a quick, easy and versatile dish that is perfect for those nights that you need to throw something together. It can be as basic as pasta & sauce or you can dress it up with fresh veggies, cheeses, and even more adventurous ingredients. I always keep a few boxes of pasta and a couple of jars of sauce on hand so that if I have a long day I can still cook a meal that my whole family loves.
I was sent a copy of Barilla’s new downloadable cookbook, The Modern Family Pasta Cookbook, last week to make a meal for my family & it was really hard to pick which meal to make as they all looked SO good! I finally decided on the Veggie Farfalle with Roasted Red Pepper and Pine Nuts since I am kind of obsessed with pine nuts. {The recipe also has a side of ricotta and fresh mozzarella, but I’m lactose intolerant so I skipped that part. I’ve included the full recipe below, though!}
Ingredients
- 1 box Barilla Veggie Farfalle
- 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
- 1 clove garlic, chopped
- 2 jars roasted red pepper (12 ounce), or substitute with your family’s favorite vegetable
- ¼ cup toasted pine nuts
- 1 ball fresh mozzarella, chopped
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- Salt, to taste
- Black pepper, to taste
- 4 leaves basil, chiffonade
Directions
- In a small bowl, combine 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, ricotta cheese and mozzarella.
- Season with salt and pepper and set aside.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
- Saute garlic in 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil until slightly yellow in color in a large skillet.
- Add roasted red peppers and Saute for 2 minutes.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Cook pasta according to package directions.
- Drain and toss with the sauce, basil and roasted pine nuts.
- To serve, arrange individual bowls and place 1 spoonful of cheese mixture inside the bowl.
- Top with pasta mixture and serve
This meal was very quick & easy to make. I was able to pick up around house while the water boiled- I love meals that allow me to multi-task! {According to the survey mentioned above, 88% of parents rely on multi-tasking each day, so I’m sure most of you would appreciate this meal!}
Today is World Pasta Day, and Barilla is celebrating by giving back! They have a “Share a Hug” tab on their Facebook page for today only that allows you to send a hug to someone via Facebook. Not only can you brighten someone’s day, but for hugging someone you’ll receive a coupon for Barilla pasta & sauce and a free download of the cookbook I got this recipe from, which includes 10 great recipes. Even better? Barilla will donate the equivalent of 4 meals to Feeding America for each hug shared!
What is your favorite pasta recipe?
Note: I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Barilla. I received product samples to facilitate my review and a promotional item as a thank-you for participating.
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6 Days Left 
The pasta dish sounds yummy. I made the lasagne from that recipe book and it was delicious. I plan on making more pasta tonight!
Stefani recently posted..World Pasta Day & Some Pasta Stats + 2 Pasta Recipes You Will Want To Try
That looks delicious! I love pasta and the cookbook is full of great recipes that I can’t wait to try. Love the giving back portion of this campaign. So heartwarming!
Tesa @ 2 Wired 2 Tired recently posted..Celebrate World Pasta Day With Barilla
oh, i love anything with pine nuts! yum!
Brett recently posted..We did the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk in Hartford, CT
MMM that looks delicious. My favorite is my homemade lasagna & Olive Garden’s Chicken alfredo. We hit Red Lobster tonight and I enjoyed a plate of Chicken alfredo with broccoli, was my National Pasta Day dinner!
Nichol recently posted..Operation Christmas Child Pack a Shoe Box Gift for a Child in Need #OCCGiving
I have been reading these posts all day and all the recipes look delicious. I’m going to have to pick up some pasta tomorrow.
Pam recently posted..Saving Money while Helping Others with #GluenGlitter #cbias
I had a hard time choosing which pasta dish to make. I didn’t end up making this one but it’s on my list to try!
Kelly @ Texas Type A Mom recently posted..Celebrate World Pasta Day #BarillaWPD
That looks fantastic! I added pine nuts to pasta once too and loved the combination! Your recipe looks like one I need to make too.
Pasta is the most versatile food and one that everyone seems to love. This is a recipe I’d love to try!
Yum! Looks delicious, I need to try that recipe too!
Jenn @therebelchick recently posted..Homemade Scary Fun! The Walking Dead Zombie Costume
This recipe looks very tasty. Thanks for sharing!
This recipe looks great. We could even use the veggies from our garden instead of the jars of red peppers. Most pasta recipes are really great when it comes to substitutions – which is nice when you have picky eaters in the house.
Dianna @ oyveyaday recently posted..Lego/K’NEX-Themed Kid’s Birthday Party