Skinny Mediterranean Pasta Food

MEDITERRANEAN PASTA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add 1 tablespoon salt. Cook the pasta until al dente. Reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta water, then drain.
• While the water boils and pasta cooks, prep your vegetables and remaining ingredients: mince the garlic; halve the cherry tomatoes; drain and roughly chop the artichokes; drain and slice the olives in half. Once the vegetables start cooking, the recipe goes quickly, so you want to be ready.
• Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the tomatoes, garlic, the remaining 1 teaspoon salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring frequently, until the garlic is fragrant and the tomatoes begin to break down and release some juices into the oil, 1 to 2 minutes.
• Add the pasta to the skillet and toss to coat. Add the artichokes and olives. Drizzle the lemon juice over the pasta. Continue tossing and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, until warmed through. If the pasta seems too dry, add a splash of the reserved pasta water to loosen it. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper as desired. Remove from heat and sprinkle with Parmesan and parsley. Toss once more and enjoy.

SKINNY MEDITERRANEAN-STYLE CHICKEN AND PASTA

Steps:

• In 4-quart Dutch oven, cook and drain pasta as directed on package, omitting salt. Return to Dutch oven; cover to keep warm.
• Meanwhile, in 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion; cook 3 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until crisp-tender. Add zucchini and garlic; cook 2 minutes. Stir in chicken, tomatoes, tomato sauce, oregano and basil. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until zucchini is tender and mixture is hot. Stir in olives.
• Pour chicken mixture over pasta. Top with feta cheese; toss to coat.

MEDITERRANEAN PASTA SALAD

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook until al dente; drain, then rinse with cold water to cool.
• Meanwhile, make the vinaigrette: Whisk the vinegar, mustard, 1 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste in a small bowl. Gradually whisk in enough of the oil to make a smooth dressing; season with salt and pepper.
• Combine the sun-dried tomatoes, basil, onion, pepperoncini, olives and oregano in a bowl. Add the cooked pasta, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Add the vinaigrette and both cheeses and toss. Chill until ready to serve.

MEDITERRANEAN CHICKEN PASTA

Steps:

• Cook pasta according to package directions. In a 6-qt. stockpot, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook and stir 4-6 minutes or until no longer pink. Remove from pot., In same pot, heat remaining oil over medium heat. Add red pepper and onion; cook and stir 4-5 minutes or until onion is tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Add wine, sun-dried tomatoes and seasonings; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 5 minutes, stirring to loosen browned bits from pot., Add broth and artichoke hearts; return to a boil. Stir in spinach and chicken; cook just until spinach is wilted., Drain pasta; stir into chicken mixture. Stir in feta cheese. If desired, top servings with basil and Parmesan cheese.

SKINNY MEDITERRANEAN "PASTA"

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees
• Spaghetti squash if very hard to cut raw so I decided to bake it whole. Puncture some holes in the squash. This will let the steam escape while baking. Place in a shallow pan and bake for about an hour or so until a knife will insert easily into the squash. You can add a little water to the pan if you want. I like my squash a little crunchy but I was busy on the computer and I let it bake longer that I should have. It can get watery if you let it bake too long. If this happens, drain in a colander for a while after you shred it.
• While the squash if baking, chop zucchini into small pieces and steam for a few minutes. You want them crunchy, not mushy.
• Chop onion garlic and pepper and saute in olive oil until softened a bit.
• Add tomatoes and saute for a minute or two more
• Once squash has cooled a bit cut in half and remove seeds. Take a fork and start shredding. I love this part! And watch as it magically starts taking a spaghetti shape- it's really cool!
• Mix all ingredients together. Chop some fresh basil and add the feta cheese. Salt and pepper to taste and a little bit of lemon and your done.