BAKED VEGETABLE PASTA

Let's see I LOVE vegetables....my family sometimes "likes" vegetables and many friends push them to the side of the plate...you know who you are!!!!!

This recipe combines the best part of healthy vegetables with the delicious tastes of pasta, cheese and marinara sauce. Try to make sure when chopping the vegetables that they are about the same size chunks. You can add or replace other vegetables with asparagus or squash or any other vegetables you like.

Ingredients:

1 zucchini chopped

6 oz cremini mushrooms chopped

1 orange and red pepper chopped

1 8oz jar of artichokes drained and chopped

2 shallots diced

2 cloves of garlic diced

8 oz mozzarella or fontina or gruyere cheese grated

1/2 cup parmesan cheese

2-3 cups marinara sauce

1 box penne pasta

2 tbl olive oil

1 tbl herbs de provence

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

1 tsp red pepper flake (optional)

2 tbl unsalted butter

Preheat oven to 450 degrees

To make clean up easier, line a baking sheet with tin foil. Pour 2 tbl olive oil on the bottom of a baking sheet. Add herbs de provence, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes and mix. Add zucchini, mushroom, peppers, artichokes, shallot and garlic. Mix so all vegetables are covered with the oil and spices. Bake in the oven until roasted about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile cook pasta according to package directions, but only cook about 6 minutes so they are still firm, drain.

Turn oven down to 375 degrees

Mix vegetables with pasta and 1 cup marinara, your cheese of choice and 1/4 cup paremsan cheese. Pour mixture into a 13 x9 pan greased with 1 tbl of butter. Pour a 1/4 cup layer of remaining marinara sauce and parmesan over the top and cut up last tbl of butter into small pieces and spread on top of pasta.

Bake about 25-30 minutes or until bubbly. Serve with the rest of the marinara sauce and extra parmesan cheese. The best recipe ever to hide those deliciously healthy vegetables.

ENJOY!