Pasta Alla Checca

Pasta with tomato sauce is a common go-to dinner. It's quick and easy, but your typical canned or bottled pasta sauces often have a lot of added ingredients (such as sugar) that make them not so healthy. This fresh tomato pasta is a light and simple alternative. It highlights the natural goodness of real tomatoes, without all the extra "stuff" of processed sauces. I've found it is perfect in the fall, when you can get such an assortment of tasty tomatoes. It's fun to buy tomatoes in a variety of colors and sizes, and mix them together into this fresh and healthy dish.

Pasta Alla Checca
4 SERVINGS 
PREP: 20 minutes           COOK: 10-15 minutes            READY IN: 30 minutes

SIMPLE	HEALTHY	YUM

INGREDIENTS

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• 3 cups chopped ripe tomatoes* (I prefer smaller varieties such as grape, cherry, or even roma - if I can find ripe ones for a good price)
• 2 cloves chopped garlic
• 1/4 cups fresh basil, torn or cut into small pieces
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 cup mozzarella, cut into cubes (or shredded, if you prefer)
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 (12-oz.) package spaghetti (I used thin whole wheat spaghetti noodles)

DIRECTIONS

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1. Combine the tomatoes, garlic, basil, oil, and vinegar in a bowl. (If roasting the tomatoes, roast them first, let cool, and then combine with the other ingredients.) Let sit while the pasta cooks. 
2. Boil the pasta in salty water as directed on package. (I've found that breaking the pasta noodles before cooking them into halves or thirds helps them to mix better with the tomato sauce.)
3. Toss the pasta with the checca sauce, add the mozzarella pieces, and season to taste with additional salt and pepper.

Yum Tip: 

If your tomatoes aren't extremely ripe or flavorful, you can boost the flavor by roasting them: Place the tomato slices in a baking dish with a light drizzle of balsamic vinegar and bake for about 20-30 minutes at 350ºF. (I like this post about roasting tomatoes - especially the part where you can pretty much do it however you like, and you won't mess it up!) Or, if you don't have the time, an alternative is to add a small amount (1/2 teaspoon or so) of sugar or honey, plus a little extra vinegar - this will also enhance the flavor of the tomatoes.

NUTRITION FACTS

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    1 serving    501 calories   18.5 g fat   65.8 g carbs    21.9 g protein    3.1 g sugar   

Enjoy!
Recipe adapted from The Family Dinner Cookbook.
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Recipe Refresh: Cauliflower Pizza Crust

We have a weekend ritual at our house of having pizza and movies. We lay out a blanket in front of the T.V. and watch a kids' movie to wind down from a busy week. My children love this ritual and it's something they look forward to every week. Plus, it's the only time I let my kids eat in the family room, which makes it even more special. In an attempt to put a healthy spin on a well-loved food at our house, I thought I would try making over our traditional pizza recipe which can be found over at From Valerie's Kitchen.  I've heard a lot about cauliflower pizza crust and thought we'd give it a shot. Could pizza really be low carb and be good at the same time? Find out our review on this recipe refresh below.

Cauliflower Pizza Crust
2 SERVINGS (makes 9" pizza)
PREP: 20 minutes           COOK: 17 minutes            READY IN: 37 minutes

SIMPLE	HEALTHY	YUM

INGREDIENTS

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• 1 cup cooked rice cauliflower (see directions below on how to prepare and cook)
• 3/4 cup mozzarella cheese
• 1 egg 
• 3/4 teaspoon oregano 
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• olive oil
• pizza sauce
• toppings (I used canadian bacon, pineapple, black olives, mozzarella and parmesan cheese)

DIRECTIONS

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1. To Prep and Cook the Cauliflower:
   Take 1 head of fresh cauliflower. Remove stems and leaves so all you have are the florets. Chop into bite sized pieces. Place in your food processor and pulse until it looks like little rice grains. (If you over pulse, it will puree, and that won't work for this recipe). Place the pulsed cauliflower into a bowl and microwave for 8 minutes. You may want to microwave and stir every two to three minutes so the cauliflower doesn't overheat. One head of cauliflower will produce approximately 3 cups of riced cauliflower. You can use the remainder to make additional pizzas, or store this in the refrigerator for up to one week.
2. To Make the Pizza Crust:
   Preheat oven to 450º. Place parchment paper on a cookie sheet. In a medium bowl, stir together 1 cup cauliflower, mozzarella cheese, egg, oregano and minced garlic. Once evenly mixed, press into 9" round circle on parchment paper. Brush with olive oil and bake for 15 minutes.
3. Remove pizza crust from oven and add sauce and toppings. Put the oven on broil and bake for 2 minutes, or until golden brown.  (Toppings should be precooked since you are broiling for just a couple minutes).

NUTRITION FACTS

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    1 serving    393 calories   21.8g fat   12.2g carbs    36.8g protein    3.5g sugar   

I found that preparing and cooking this pizza took the same amount of time a normal pizza dough would, and my children, as well as my husband and I really loved it. I did pack the pizza sauce full of spice and that seemed to help the flavor. Below you can see a side-by-side comparison on the recipes and see how they differ in preparation and nutritional facts.

Original Recipe	Refresh Recipe
Pizza Dough: 2 1/4 active dry yeast ½ teaspoon sugar 1-1/2 cups warm water 1 teaspoon salt 2 tablespoons olive oil 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour	Pizza Dough: 1 cup cooked rice cauliflower 3/4 cup mozzarella cheese 1 egg  3/4 teaspoon oregano  2 large garlic cloves, minced
Let dough rise for an hour.	Dough does not need to rise, but a little bit more time to prep.
460 calories, 13.4g fat, 56g carbs, 27.7g protein, 3g sugar	393 calories, 21.8g fat, 12.2g carbs, 36.8g protein 3.5g sugar

Enjoy!
Recipe adapted from Your Lighter Side.