This vegetarian pasta dinner recipe is a rescue for the busy weekday nights when there's very little time before dinner. The ingredients needed for this recipe are quite straightforward, too, and we're pretty sure you can find at least half of the ingredients already in your kitchen without a sweat!
The essence of this recipe is that it doesn't rely on a pasta sauce. Instead, the secret ingredient here is the olive oil, which is essentially the 'sauce' or heart of the recipe. So, we simply can’t emphasise the importance of using a premium quality olive oil! As the base ingredient of the recipe, a good quality olive oil really goes a long way. We used Vassae premium extra virgin olive oil for this recipe.
“Pasta la vista, baby!”
Olive oil is just one of the ingredients in this tasteful medley of Mediterranean flavours. Here is a list of some of the characteristic flavours of the region and what makes this pasta a Mediterranean cuisine must-try.
Olive oil forms the base of this dish, and a splash can even be added towards the end of cooking for extra flavour.
Black olives or Kalamata olives (pitted and halved) can be a great addition if you enjoy olives. If you're not the biggest fan, feel free to omit it from the recipe.
Vegetables we chose include artichokes, tomatoes, and bell peppers.
Fresh herbs are an important addition to Mediterranean cuisine as well as pastas in general.
Feta cheese is our go to cheese when making this recipe. A crumble of feta cheese on top of the pasta is just the amount of cheesy and salty goodness this recipe needs.
Delicious pasta recipes really are a saving grace for all the busy families out there who run on a tight schedule. It's convenient and there are plenty of ways to make it healthy and improvise it to your diet preference. This recipe, for example, is a vegetarian dish with some of the ingredients being fresh while others being pantry staples such as canned olives and artichokes. But keep in mind that this recipe can be easily improvised with the addition of chicken if you're interested in having a source of animal protein, alternatively if you prefer a vegan diet you can opt for a vegan feta cheese.