Fruits & Veggies Monday {Simple Spaghetti with Zucchini, Tomatoes & Lima Beans}

Happy Monday everyone!  I hope you are all having a fantastic start to the week.  It's always fun when @lenasveganliving's #fruitsandveggiesmonday comes back around again to get all of the great food inspiration from across the Steemit-sphere.  Check out her weekly post for rules or to see all of the entries in one spot!

Without realizing it ahead of time, I think I just about went with a "Christmas in July" feel for my meal prepping this week.  Lots of red and green in our bowls with the fresh tomatoes, bell peppers, zucchini, leafy greens and beans that are in season.  That color combination is actually supposed to be quite visually appealing and leave you feeling more satisfied after a meal, so I'll take that as a bonus.  I was more concerned this week with sticking with really simple meals that are of course healthy with as many locally sourced options as possible than color, but it's fun when you end up with a theme. ;)

I'm trying to build up my wellness offerings here locally to expand my business a bit, which means I'm trying to buckle down and get some of the groundwork taken care of this week.  Having simple meals ready to go will definitely help keep me focused on the tasks I want to accomplish each day.  That's the wonderful thing about having quite a few years of solid meal prepping under my belt--I have some great classics to rely on to make things a whole lot easier in the kitchen.

My first easy red and green meal with last a few days for lunch.  I had extra peach basil dressing leftover from my @cookwithus entry that I posted a few days ago, so I put together a quick chopped salad with that drizzled over top.  Cooked lady peas, chopped fresh tomato and bell pepper from the farmers market, a few olives, and some leafy greens made for a perfectly satisfying mid-day meal.

For dinners I opted for a classic easy option--spaghetti!  It doesn't get a whole lot easier than pasta with a veggie-packed sauce.  I used a brown rice, amaranth and quinoa noodle variety, but you could use whatever you have on hand.  The veggies were more of my goodies from the weekly farmers market haul.  It had rained quite hard Saturday morning, so some of the vendors didn't make it out for the market.  Luckily the storms passed over just in time for it to open so we could support the ones who did!

Spaghetti with Zucchini, Tomatoes & Lima Beans

Makes 6 servings

• 1 (12-ounce) box whole grain or bean-based spaghetti noodles
• 2 shallots, peeled & thinly sliced
• 2 small zucchini, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 tablespoons organic tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
• 4 medium tomatoes, chopped
• 1 tablespoon vegan Worcestershire sauce (optional)
• 2 cups cooked lima beans or other legumes of choice
• 1 cup chopped fresh oregano
• nutritional yeast for serving

Heat a large skillet over medium heat.  Add your shallots and cook for about 7 minutes, adding a splash of water as needed to prevent sticking.  Once the shallots have softened add in the zucchini, garlic, tomato paste, Italian seasoning and a few tablespoons of water.  Stir together and let cook for another 10 minutes.  Finally, lower the heat and add in the chopped fresh tomatoes and Worcestershire sauce (adds just a little depth of flavor to the sauce).

While the zucchini mixture is cooking, start boiling the water for the pasta.  Cook according to package directions.  When the pasta is just about done, remove your pan of vegetables from the heat and stir in the lima beans and oregano to warm through.

Drain the spaghetti then divide into six bowls.  I go ahead and have my glass containers ready for leftovers. :)  Top each of the portions of pasta with the veggie mixture and a sprinkle of nutritional yeast.  Serve and enjoy!

This is generally how I make my pasta healthier--way more veggies than actual noodles!  You can hardly even see the spaghetti hiding underneath the sauce. ;)  These noodles were ok, but ended up sticking together quite a bit.  I think I prefer the lentil or chickpea-based varieties instead.  We do not eat a ton of pasta, but it is nice to have healthier options when we do. Cheers to a productive week!