I love pasta.
No. I looooove pasta. I LURV it.
Who doesn’t?
One of the biggest changes I made when I adopted a healthier diet was to start eating whole wheat spaghetti and adding chopped fresh veggies. For someone accustomed to eating three servings of regular spaghetti with nothing but red sauce, this was an adjustment.
Yet I simply could not imagine a world in which I did not treat myself to a heaping helping of the clingy noodles at least once a week, so I persevered.
Whole wheat pasta has more texture than white – it’s grainier and chewier. Just like vegetable juice with less sodium and peanut butter that contains just peanuts (who knew?), it takes some getting used to. But, because of the heart and digestive benefits of eating your grains whole, it’s worth it. Also, because it doesn’t taste quite so much like carby carbs, I tend to eat more reasonable portions.
Here’s what I do, Haphazard Recipe style:
Ingredients:
- Whole wheat spaghetti (organic if it’s on sale!)
- Chopped baby carrots
- Largely chopped onion
- Green pepper in chunks
- Diced zucchini and yellow squash
- Chopped mushrooms
- Organic ‘Chunky Garden’ red sauce
Directions:
- Start a pot of water boiling and add raw spaghetti
- After a couple minutes, add chopped baby carrots and onions
- When the pasta is almost to desired tenderness, throw in the peppers, zucchini and yellow squash and mushrooms
- Drain, then add sauce
- Put in face
Obviously, this is not gluten free. Fortunately, there are a number of pasta alternatives such as rice, spelt and amaranth. I’ve tried a few, and they’re pretty good. It’s possible to eat Italian, even if you’re a sensitive-tummy-vegetarian.
Now I need to try throwing the whole wheat spaghetti at the wall…
I will have to try this. Honestly, I dont like the texture of the whole grain pastas but for you, I will give it a try 🙂
It’s definitely an adjustment. I admire your sense of adventure;)