Mama Mia! *RECIPE ALERT*

I started the Au Naturale diet to become a healthier person. Of course, it doesn't always work the way I intend. From all of my face-plants in the McDonald's drive-thrus on business trips to gorging on all-natural yet highly caloric homemade Cadbury Creme Eggs, my waistline continuously expands and contracts like a car tire on a hot day.

It seems like an oxymoron when you can eat local and organic yet still gain weight. But local beer is still beer. Pasture-raised meat is still meat- although leaner. And a pound of zucchini, as nutritious as it can be, is still a pound of food when eaten all at once.

And there, Loyal Readers, is how a relaxing weekend away almost split a pair of jeans.

A few weeks ago, the BF and I got to escape to the wilds of northern Minnesota for a long weekend away. Northern Minnesota is glorious, with many of the 10,000 lakes within driving distance (I personally counted about 45). We used the trip as an excellent opportunity to go through two of the CSA boxes in our possession: one from our regular Sunday pickup, and one from a rescheduled pickup due to the trip. Unfortunately, in our rush to grab the second box and pack it up before we hit the road at 5am for a 12 hour drive, I completely forgot to take a picture. But it was very similar to week 2, which you can see below:

Yellow pepper, zucchini, lettuce, 2 tomatoes (one green), sungold tomatoes, cucumbers, radishes, beets

Again, the cooking results from weeks 2 and 3 were nothing terribly fancy as we threw almost everything on the grill, along with pasture-raised chicken breasts from C&D Family Farms and Pirate Wurst brats from Crafthouse Market Goods. Seriously, it's hard to think of cooking anything indoors when the weather is amazing, and a front row seat to a glorious lake view only sealed the deal.  Lunches were leftovers or the BF's preferred vegan lunch meats on locally baked bread with the lettuce and tomato that you see above. And we passed many a lazy summer day away sipping on Surly beer, locally brewed in Minneapolis and only found in the Twin Cities. The BF loves Surly's Furious Red Ale, so we had to make a stop on the way up to grab provisions.

But man, was it a lot of food. When we were done just 4 days later we had gone through almost all of it, and by then I was swearing I would not drink alcohol nor eat my weight in food for the next week. So it goes to show: a lot of healthy food can still be a lot of food. More than once I was uncomfortable. But at least I was uncomfortable with food that won't have unintended effects on my body.

A few days after we got back, tired, without much in the fridge, and certainly not in the mood to cook, we threw together an easy pasta dish using Pasta Puttana noodles, the remainder of the veggies, and herbs from the back deck. Part improv, part slightly modified from a recipe online, it was light, refreshing, and flavorful. Not too boring, not too heavy on the oil, and quick to whip up, it was almost the perfect pasta primavera. Too bad we weren't drinking, because a crisp glass of Pinot Gris would have been the perfect accompaniment.

I raced to write down what we did before it slipped away forever. Note that we've made a few pasta primaveras since then and none quite measured up to this one. Although I'm sure they could have if I just took a minute to look back at what I wrote:

Pasta Primavera: (serves 2)

1 8 oz pkg seasoned garlic tagliatelle from Pasta Puttana
3 tbs olive oil
2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 small zucchini, chopped
1/2 large yellow pepper, chopped
generous dash of crushed red pepper (if you like some spicy)
3/4 cup fresh basil
2 springs Italian oregano
1 spring hot n spicy oregano
freshly grated parmesean cheese

Directions:

Bring a pot of generously salted water to a boil. If using dried pasta, add to water and cook based on package directions. If using a fresh pasta such as Pasta Puttana, continue to steps below while waiting for water to boil.

Heat oil over high heat in large pan; saute garlic for a minute- keep an eye on it or it will burn.
Add veggies, saute for one minute.
Add herbs & red pepper flakes, and toss all together. Turn heat down to medium and cook everything for 3 minutes.
Turn heat to low and cover to keep warm while cooking/finishing pasta.
If using fresh pasta, add pasta to water and cook for just one minute.

Drain and return pasta to pot. Pour contents of pan (including remaining oil) into pot with pasta, toss together.  Serve with fresh parmesean cheese.