Cage Free Pasta Recipe

I have finally caved and ordered an add-on item for my produce box: herb fusili from Bombolini Pasta.  Fortunately another Dominion Harvest customer came up with a recipe for me to remix.  My secret is to take someone else's hard work and add more vegetables I had lying around.

Bootleg Pasta (originally Flippant Flip's Tomato and Zucchini Pasta, linked above)

1 pint sun gold cherry tomatoes from Adlyn Farm
1 zucchini from my last Dominion Harvest box (sorry, Zucchini Farm, I forgot who you are)
1 Marconi pepper from Adlyn Farm
Some broccoli
Mushrooms to taste
Leftover onion
Basil
Garlic salt
Olive oil
Feta cheese from Lover's Retreat Dairy
1/2 lb herb fusili from Bombolini Pasta
1 lb ground beef

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

Slice tomatoes in half, cut up the zucchini and mushrooms, them mix them in a rectangular glass baking dish with olive oil, garlic salt, and basil.  Trust your heart on how much seasoning to add.  It is most likely impossible to have too much garlic or basil.  Bake for 20 minutes.

While vegetables are in the oven, cut up the pepper.  Brown the ground beef with your pepper and leftover onion.  Since it is impossible to have too much basil and garlic, you might as well add some to the beef.  And some tarragon--everyone knows that the more seasonings you use, the better you are at cooking.

Once beef is cooked and other vegetables are done, combine and mix in your glass pan.

Part of this culinary adventure involves cooking with pasta that is not part of a 10 for $10 promotion at Kroger.  This is fancy pasta for fancy people as it says on the passive aggressive Post-It note I used to keep anyone from messing with my local, cage-free noodles.  Apparently it has to stay in the refrigerator and only takes 1-2 minutes to cook.

 Have chair stolen by cat while slaving away over a hot stove and contemplating making a Facebook status update about how lucky everyone is that you don't have Instagram.

Top noodles with meat and vegetables or combine before serving.  Top with feta.

Honey Ginger Chicken

I have become a supporter of local agriculture.  Every other week I get a box full of assorted produce from assorted Virginia farms.  In theory this is supposed to help me expand my culinary horizons.  Mostly I add vegetables I've never heard of to things I already know how to make.  This usually means tacos or, since I now get a dozen free range eggs, quiche.

Dominion Harvest sends out recipes.  Usually I look through them, decide I can't think of a main dish to make with the side dish, and give a piece of locally grown, organic lettuce to my pleco.  Last week I decided to modify the Honey Ginger Green beans into an entree.

Honey Ginger Chicken

• Soy sauce
• Green beans, trimmed (I assume this means "cut the weird looking ends off.  This is my first experience with green beans that doesn't involve a can.)
• Sliced water chestnuts
• Chicken, cut into cubes/small pieces
• Sliced mushrooms
• Celery, cut up
• 2 tablespoons garlic
• 1 tablespoon ginger (this is from the original recipe.  Having made it once, I will probably scale back on the ginger next time).
• 1/4 cup honey

Boil water.  Add green beans and cook for ~5 minutes.  Drain and rinse with cold water.

Heat 1/2 cup of soy sauce in a skillet large enough to fit all your meat and vegetables.  Stir in garlic and ginger.  If you're lazy like me, the powder will soak up the soy sauce.  Add a bit more or see what it looks like after you add the honey.  Add chicken, water chestnuts, celery, and green beans.  Stir, cover, and go see what's on TV.

Check in on food.  Add mushrooms at some point.  Stir just enough that it looks like you're working hard and people should appreciate your efforts.  If you've got some greens from your produce box, go ahead and add those too.  I mean, they can't give you anything that's actually toxic, right?

Serve over rice or eat as is.