Gluten Free Vegetarian Pasta

This recipe will feed a family of 4, with enough left overs to feed two more people...according to our family serving sizes.  My husband loves the flavor of garlic and onion, but cannot stand to bite into a chunk of either no matter how small, so this recipe was made with powdered forms of each.  I used Gluten Free pasta, but you can substitute for regular.

1. package of gluten free pasta (we did the Rigatoni)
2. 1 can of garlic onion tomato sauce
3. 16 oz of fresh frozen California mix vegetables
4. Parmesan cheese (powdered)
5. onion powder (to taste)
6. garlic powder (to taste)
7. salt (I used granulated sea salt)

Fill a large pot with warm water and sprinkle in salt until you can see it form a thin layer on bottom of pot (or about 2 tbsps of salt).  Put package of GF pasta into the water, then put on stove to start to bring it to a boil.  Now, most pasta instructions say to put the water on by itself first, however, I find that especially with GF pasta if you put it in the water while the water comes up to a boil the pasta is usually done by the time the water is boiling.  When I say done there is a slight firmness to the pasta still.  Because GF pasta is so fragile it will break into messy pieces if cooked too long. At the same time as the pasta is cooking, put a pot on the stove and steam the frozen veggies.  They will finish slightly after the pasta.  Once pasta is done, drain in a strainer and put back into the pot.  Now add the sauce, onion powder, garlic powder and if it needs more salt add it too.  However having the pasta cooked in salt water, it will be salty. Once the pasta is done and the veggies are done I will dish up the pasta, then add the veggies on top of the pasta in the eating bowl, then top the eating bowl with Parmesan cheese. YUM!

Artful Food

When you think of food what do you think of?  Do you think of the taste more than how the food looks? Or do you think about the smell of the food more than the colors of the food?  Let me paint you an image.  Think in your mind about a light bed of soft baby green spinach mixed with light tangy green  chopped Romane and Iceberg lettuce.  On closer look you'll notice a few dull teal green sprigs of kale, bright pops of red tomatoes, deep purple crinkles of cabbage, and slick slivers of yellow pepper float about this crunchy salad.  How did you do?  Could you picture this bowl of salad?  What helped you picture it most: the colors or the description of texture for each piece of food?

For me, it's always the colors.  When I go to a restaurant and order grilled vegetables I know that if they are done well there will be charred bits of blackened crisp on the outside of each vegetable.  However if what is put in front of me is mostly blackened crispy ash, that isn't going to be eaten by me, nor does it look appetizing.  Same with a pizza.  If I order a pepperoni pizza, there had better be a good amount of pepperoni on the slice that I eat (one or two doesn't work for me...I'd need 4).  The crust better be easy to chew, but firm enough not to ooze my cheese and other toppings off the crust.

It is the thoughts like those that have been filling my mind as I have been on this most recent pathway, finding out how to take better photographs.  This has led me to be more artistic with the food I cook, the food I eat, and the food I give my family.  When I plate food I want to see lots of colors, lots of variation in texture, and a good balance overall, because to me this means that I will have a more enjoyable meal.  I decided to test out a few of my family's favorite recipes on you all.  Let me know what you think in how my food looks.  Does it entice you to want to eat it?  Does it invoke a hunger for a specific color of food?  Can you see the texture?

Below I have provided you with a soup, a red pasta, a white pasta, and a rice dish.  Recipes will be in separate blog posts for your enjoyment!

Loaded Potato Soup

Garlic Tomato Vegetarian Pasta

Turmeric Curry Chicken and Rice with Broccoli

Alfredo Bolognese with Countryside Vegetables