Last night, I made Ziti with peppers and yellow squash (from
my garden). It was a big hit .
Ingredients
Ziti - 1 box
Red Pepper - 1 diced
Green Pepper - 1 diced
Yellow Squash - 1
diced
Red Onion - 1
diced
Lemon
-
Juice of ½ a lemon and whole zest (must)
Red Chili Flakes - 1
tbs
Garlic
- 3 cloves- finely diced
Herbs (Fresh Basil, Oregano and Thyme)
To Make Sauce
Butter - 1 tbs
Flour - 2 tbs
Milk - 2
cups
Colby and Monterey Jack Cheese - 6 to 8 oz
Red Pepper Flakes - 1
tsp
Basil
Method:
To make Béchamel Sauce with cheese
Melt butter
over medium heat in a saucepan. Add the flour and give a nice stir. Reduce the
heat to low and cook until the flour mixture turns golden. Slowly add in the
milk (preferably boiled), Make sure you stir it continuously till it turns to a
smooth paste without any lumps, Add more milk or the reserved pasta liquid if
needed. Once the sauce has thickened
add a cup of shredded Colby-Monterey Jack cheese. Add basil
chiffonade, Red Pepper flakes and remove from heat.
Pasta
Cook pasta according to the directions in the package. Reserve ½ cup of pasta
liquid. Take olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add minced garlic and sauté
it well. Once it is softened, add onions and all the diced vegetables. Add
salt, red chili flakes and fresh herbs. Once the vegetables become soft (not
mushy), stir in pasta and cook for a minute. Add lemon juice and zest over
pasta. Pour the Béchamel Sauce over
the pasta and give a nice stir so that the pasta is coated well with
the cheesy sauce. Garnish with
basil chiffonade. Serve hot.
~Yummy Ziti