Penne and Veggie Casserole

This recipe serves 4 and makes a yummy leftover food too.. :) .. I learnt this from a Greek TV show while in Cyrpus...I knew very little Greek so had missed out on a few details while watching the show...I could make it a yummier version with special inputs from a very dear friend Padmaja....You could refer to my earlier post on types of pasta to understand this recipe better.

All you need: For 4 
1 Cup uncooked Penne
 1 Cup Fusilli
Water to cook the pasta
Salt (for the pasta and the vegetables)
Extra Virgin Olive oil - 2 tsps

Vegetables: 
Capsicum /bell peppers (red, yellow and green) - 1 cup
French beans - chopped - 1 cup
zucchini - chopped - 1 cup
Onion - 1 (chopped)
Garlic 3-4 cloves


Herbs and spices:  (Fresh or dry)
Oregeno, Rosemary, Basil - 1/2 tsp each
Red chillies - flakes (dry roast and crush the red chillies) - 2
Coriander leaves / Cilantro - for garnish
Black Pepper powder - 1/2 tsp
Nutmeg

Process:

• Boil water in a vessel, add salt and few drops of oil and add in your pasta (I used penne and fusilli)
• Once the pasta is a little less than al-dante (say, half done :-) )... use a sieve and drain out the water and keep it aside. (so that the pasta does not become mushy when baked)
• It is better not to run cold water on the cooked pasta as the starch helps in soaking up the sauce or any other flavour better
• In the meanwhile, prepare your vegetables for the casserole
• Microwave or blanch your vegetables for 4-5 minutes and keep it aside
• Pour a tsp of oil into a wok/kadai/pan and put in the garlic and onions
• Add salt, pepper powder, chilli flakes and the herbs and saute well
• Add all the vegetables and saute for a minute or so
• Grease a baking dish (preferably 8 x 8)
• Spread the vegetables and the cooked pasta in alternate layers
• Sprinkle shredded mozarella cheese and grate a little nutmeg over the dish
• You could also add a layer of cheese between the vegetables and pasta (optional)
• Cook in the oven at 300 F for 20 minutes
• Take it out of the oven and garnish with the remaining cilantro/corainder leaves 

Serve with a bowl of tomato soup...YUM!!


Trivia:

• You could use any short pasta of your choice for this dish. Please refer to my earlier post on>>check this link - Knowing your Pastas
• I also make another version of this casserole with a hint of tomato sauce...more about it in my next post...
• It would be good to add fresh herbs....but dried versions are equally good
• Another way to work the the veggies is to oven roast them for 12-15 minutes on the top rack at 450F.