This is the dinner that I made when I was canning all those tomatoes. It is actually a very simple dinner to make, which was my goal. I really didn't feel much like cooking at that point, but I was ravenously hungry and it was late enough at night that I didn't think we'd find acceptable food outside the home. I therefore hunkered down to make this and I really didn't think I'd care for it. Was I ever wrong! This was actually quite delicious and both my husband and I ate far more of it than we really intended to.
The yogurt may seem like an odd addition. I threw in a few more hot peppers than was probably strictly necessary and I wanted to tame their heat. Dairy is a great way to kind of rein in chili peppers. Throwing it in after cooking had stopped kept the fat-free yogurt from curdling, which is always a threat, but allowed it to come up to a reasonable temperature with the rest of the food.
Pasta with Peppers and Mushrooms (serves 4; approx. $2.34/serving)
1 box whole-wheat pasta
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, roughly sliced
1 bell pepper, diced
4 green chili peppers, chopped
1 pound plum tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 package beech mushrooms, roughly chopped
1 cup fat-free Greek yogurt
Kosher salt to taste
Equipment:
- Large saucepan
- Colander
- Wok
- Fill the large saucepan with water and bring to a boil. Cook the pasta according to package instructions and drain.
- Meanwhile, heat the oil in the wok.
- Add the onion, garlic, chilies and bell pepper. I usually add a little salt to the onions, but it's up to you. Sauté until the onion is colored and softened.
- Add the tomatoes. Sauté until the tomatoes are very soft and the mixture is very liquid.
- Add the mushrooms. Sauté until the mushrooms are cooked, which shouldn't take very long at all.
- Remove from heat. Add the still-warm drained pasta and the yogurt. Mix very well, until you can't identify the yogurt anymore.
- Serve.
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