Cathy Wolz
Toss an edible garden into some hearty whole-wheat pasta with today’s Health-e-Recipe for Penne with Vegetables. Sure, you could just cut up a bunch of vegetables — but this recipe allows for their different cooking times. By cooking the broccoli efficiently in the boiling pasta water for a couple of minutes, you can cook the rest of the veggies in a way that allows their flavors to blend slowly — which, for broccoli, might result in overcooking.
Whole-wheat pasta has more fiber than regular semolina-flour pasta. It’s chewy, but that’s because its bran and germ are intact. Like other whole-grain products — such as whole-wheat bread and brown rice — whole-wheat pasta is digested more slowly than white pasta, so you get longer-lasting energy and feel fuller longer. Eating whole grains may even help with weight control.
The taste of this dish is brightened with fresh lemon rind and fresh basil leaves. Colorful as well, the bell peppers, zucchini, tomatoes, garlic and mushrooms provide a profusion of cancer-fighting phytochemicals, Italian-style. It’s perfect for a healthy Spring dinner on the patio. For more delicious, cancer-fighting recipes, visit AICR’s Test Kitchen. Click here to subscribe to our weekly Health-e-Recipes.
