Pasta with Garden Vegetables

This is one of my favorite pasta sauces: it's a tomato sauce laden with vegetables, and with just a little bit of cream for decadence (you can lose the cream if you want a vegan version). The original recipe is from a rather old Israeli vegetarian cookbook, by Naomi Lis-Mayberg, and it is rather complicated, involving a roux and various other steps. This is a simplified version.

The choice of veggies is kind of flexible. In the original recipe there are also radishes and zucchini, neither of which I like, so I removed them. You can add them in or swap out some of the existing veggies if you don't like them.

Pasta with Garden Vegetables 

Ingredients: (For 4-6 portions)

- 1 lb/500 grams pasta

- 1-2 tbsp olive oil 

- 3 carrots, thinly sliced 

- 1 large onion, chopped 

- a handful of parsley, finely chopped

- a handful of fresh basil, finely chopped 

- 3 cloves of garlic, crushed or minced 

- 1 can crushed tomatoes (or 7 fresh tomatoes, peeled and sliced)

- 1 bell pepper (green or red), de-seeded and cubed. 

- 1 cup white wine 

- salt and pepper to taste 

- about 1/2 cup light cream or heavy cream (skip if making a vegan version) 

- Parmesan or mozzarella cheese, to garnish (optional)

Preparation: 

1. Add the oil to a large pot or saucepan and heat. Add the carrot, onion, parsley, basil and garlic. Cook over medium heat for about 20 minutes, or until the veggies turn golden (be careful not to burn them. If they start to brown, lower the heat). Cover the pot and cook on low heat another 15 minutes. 

2. Add the tomatoes, bell pepper, salt, black pepper and wine, and cook on low heat for about 45 minutes, or until the vegetables are soft. 

3. Boil water for the pasta and cook according to directions. Just before serving, add the cream to the sauce and stir well. Check seasoning and correct it. Mix the sauce with the pasta and serve, topped with a  bit of cheese. 

Enjoy!