Pasta with White Beans, Tomatoes, Spinach, and Pesto

I was feeling a bit lazy and hadn't really thought about taking anything out for dinner, so I looked around to see what I had in the pantry and fridge. I had pasta, I had tomatoes, and some leftover pesto that I used for another recipe.  Hmmmm.... Here's what I came up with :

Ingredients:

1 pint of grape tomatoes, cut into thirds
1/2 cup of minced onion
One 14 oz can of white beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup of gluten free chicken broth
1 cup of chopped spinach (more if you like)
1/4 cup of gluten free or homemade pesto
1/2 of a 475g package of your favorite gluten free pasta
Salt and pepper
Freshly grated Parmesan



Method|

Start making your pasta according to the package directions. I always add a bit of salt and a touch of olive oil to the water to prevent the pasta from sticking together.

Meanwhile:

Sauté onion in a bit of olive oil until tender , add chopped tomatoes and cook until tomatoes are starting to soften. Add the chicken broth, white beans, and spinach. Simmer until the sauce is thickened a  little.  Add salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat and stir in the pesto until combined.  You can add more pesto to your own taste.

Rinse pasta, and add to tomato pesto mixture. Toss then serve immediately. Top with freshly grated Parmesan and enjoy!

Easy Breakfast

Being a celiac, I'm always looking for good breakfast recipes or ideas.  I don't like to eat gluten free cereal as I find they can be full of sugar and not that nutritious. I typically have a smoothie every morning, so I get my fruit and veggies, but I like to get some real protein too.  I came across an old favorite from the Best of Bridge, which is super easy to make and the best part is the ingredients are mostly naturally gluten free.  You just need to replace the english muffin with gluten free bread, bagel or english muffin.

It's a great recipe if you're having company, or if you just want to make a single Nest, just use a ramekin.  

Here is the recipe and the link to the Best of Bridge website.  


Scotty's Nest Eggs

Ingredients for Each Nest:

2-3 thin slices Gluten Free Black Forest ham
1 egg
1 Tbsp. cream 15 mL
1 heaping Tbsp. grated Swiss cheese 25mL
sprinkle of dried basil
Gluten Free English muffin

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 deg.F (180 deg.C). Grease large muffin tins. Line with ham and break egg over top. Add cream and sprinkle with cheese and basil. Bake 12-15 minutes. Serve on half a toasted English muffin. (Place water in any unused muffin cups to prevent damage.)

http://www.bestofbridge.com/2009/05/08/scottys-nest-eggs/

Here are my pictures:

 Step 1 - add gluten free ham

 Step 2 - add your egg the center of the ham

 Step 3 - add your cream

Step 4 - add your shredded cheese and sprinkle dried basil on top and toss it in the oven!  

I found that 15 minutes gives a liquidy soft yolk, but if you prefer a firmer yolk, cook it a bit longer.  

Enjoy!!

xo Kim