Veggie Primavera: Deliciously Healthy Comfort Food

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A Peek Into My World

I enjoyed my date night cooking class with my husband so much that I signed up for another one!  This time I went alone though.  I attended the Pressure Cooking Demystified class and it was so much fun.  Since I bought my Instant Pot last week I figured I definitely needed to learn how to use it.  I was honestly surprised at how user-friendly it is.  Training myself to use this quicker way of cooking will take a little time for sure.  I still prefer to use my dutch oven for some things, but this is such a handy option to have.

In the class, we made cheesecake, short ribs, risotto, and a bean salad.  I have to say that I adore how quickly I can cook dried beans in the Instant Pot.  No more soaking overnight for me!  Let’s be honest, I’m not at my best in the evening and a lot of times I forget anyway.  It literally only took 20 minutes to cook dried beans and they were perfect.  Seriously.  If for nothing else I’d purchase the machine again for that!  We served the bean salad with a yummy vinegarette, pickled red onions, and fresh arugula.  I could have made a meal out of that alone.

The cheesecake looked amazing.  SO light and fluffy.  Unfortunately, there was all purpose flour in the recipe so I didn’t get to taste the cheesecake.  The short ribs were so good.  I was astonished the instant pot would sear and braise the ribs.  Then it even reduced the sauce.  That would have made such a mess and lots of dishes if I had to make that traditionally.  And I loathe doing dishes!  Anything that cuts that down without compromising my recipe and the taste of the food is good in my book!

Moral of the story, I’m getting on board with the Instant Pot!  Expect to see more recipes on the blog using this little piece of kitchen equipment.

Veggie Primavera

What I love so much about this dish is that it allows for so much wiggle room.  You can custom make this to avoid a roux (no flour), use your personal favorite veggies, and customize the seasoning for your own palate.  Prior to being gluten-free, I used cream and a roux.  Now, to avoid the gluten I use the cream cheese to obtain a thicker and creamier sauce.  I have also switched up my veggies a bit for my son to include his favorites.  I get it, not everyone likes broccoli.  Some days my son loves it, sometimes he decides he won’t touch anything that contains it.  No problem.  Test out the kiddos mood and adjust the recipe.  Or my personal favorite, I forgot to buy an ingredient at the store.  No problem!  All substitutions are allowed here, folks.  You can have it your way!

How to Make this Veggie Primavera

Go ahead and start your stockpot of water on the stove.  Salt your water as this is the only opportunity to season your pasta.  While the water is heating up, go ahead and wash your produce.  Take the cream cheese out of the refrigerator so it can come to room temp.  Slice the mushrooms, shallot, and carrots.  Set them aside.  Next dice your onion.  Set that aside as well.  Quarter your tomatoes.  Set them aside too.

By now your water is probably boiling.  Add your pasta and cook according to the package. Once pasta is cooked, reserve some of the pasta water for the sauce later.

In a large saute pan add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and heat pan over medium heat.  Add the onion, shallots, and carrots.  Season with salt and pepper.  Saute until the onions begin turning translucent.  Add the mushrooms, tomatoes, and peas.  Saute until mushrooms begin to soften.  Now it’s time to add the garlic in the pan.  Saute for about a minute and then add the cream cheese.  Stir to help melt the cheese evenly.  Add the parm and stir.  To the pan, pour in the stock. Stir to incorporate the stock.  A thick and creamy sauce should be what you end up with.  The cooked pasta can now be combined with the sauce  Stir well to evenly coat pasta.  If needed, use some of the reserved pasta water.

Congrats!  You are ready to serve the veggie primavera.  I like to garnish mine with fresh basil, tomatoes, and of course, more fresh grated parm.  Enjoy!

Print Recipe

Veggie Primavera: Deliciously Healthy Comfort Food

A deliciously healthy comfort food for any day of the year!

Votes: 3
Rating: 5
You:

Rate this recipe!

Course

Main Dish, pasta

Cuisine

comfort food, gluten free, Italian

Prep Time

10 min

Cook Time

30 min

Servings

servings MetricUS Imperial

Ingredients

• 4 cloves garlic sliced
• 1/2 onion rough chop
• 1 shallot sliced
• 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes quartered
• 1 cup green peas frozen
• 4 baby bella mushrooms sliced
• 8 oz cream cheese
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese grated with microplane
• 1/2 cups carrots sliced
• 1 cup baby spinach
• TT salt and pepper
• 12 ounce favorite gluten free penne
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 handful fresh basil for garnish

Course Main Dish, pasta Cuisine comfort food, gluten free, Italian Prep Time 10 min Cook Time 30 min Servings servings MetricUS Imperial Ingredients 4 cloves garlic sliced 1/2 onion rough chop 1 shallot sliced 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes quartered 1 cup green peas frozen 4 baby bella mushrooms sliced 8 oz cream cheese 1 cup chicken stock 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese grated with microplane 1/2 cups carrots sliced 1 cup baby spinach TT salt and pepper 12 ounce favorite gluten free penne 2 tbsp olive oil 1 handful fresh basil for garnish

Votes: 3 Rating: 5 You: Rate this recipe!

Instructions

1. Gather and wash all produce
2. Dice(or slice) onion, shallot, mushrooms, and carrots
3. Set aside
4. Slice garlic
5. Set aside
6. Quater tomatoes
7. Set aside
8. Grate Parm
9. Set aside
10. Measure out stock, peas, and spinach
11. Set aside
12. Take cream cheese out of fridge and set on counter
13. In a stockpot bring water to boil and cook pasta according to package
14. Meanwhile, heat 2 tbsp olive oil in large pan
15. Add the onions, carrots, and shallot to pan
16. Season with salt and pepper
17. Saute until onions are close to being translucent
18. Add the mushrooms, tomatoes, and peas
19. Saute until mushrooms are softened and add garlic
20. Saute about a minute careful not to burn garlic
21. Add cream cheese and stir to melt completely
22. Add the stock and stir to incorporate
23. Season with salt and pepper
24. Add parm, stirring to incorporate
25. Allow to simmer on low, stirring occasionally
26. Pasta should be done by now
27. Drain (reserving a little of the starchy water) and add to pot with veggies and sauce
28. Add some of the reserved liquid, if needed.
29. Add spinach and wilt
30. Salt and pepper to taste
31. Add fresh basil, parm, and tomatoes to garnish