Eat Like a Rabbit

Too dark for pictures.

I was invited to a dinner by a drug rep. The speaker as he stood up said he couldn't believe the turnout. He said the restaurant must be good. The 60-ish number of medical professionals laughed. A waiter came around asking our orders. There were three options, but being a vegetarian, I didn't catch what they were. I simply requested a vegetarian plate. Some time later, a waiter came by with salads and atop mine (just like all the others) was a nice strip of crispy bacon. By this point, the lecture had started and I quietly whispered a request for a bacon-less salad. The waiter very kindly obliged, but failed to remove the offensive salad. I suppose if I had thought about it, I would have just passed it down to the next individual. Instead, I shoved it toward the center of the table and out of my line of sight.

I was so proud when I created this recipe. Because our wedding was mostly pink, I had wanted a "pink" pasta sauce. I wish now I had made this creation, then. This sauce was absolutely perfect. I think this recipe is a more elegant alternative to spaghetti sauce, but is healthier than straight fettucini sauce. Also, the mixture makes it great with vegetables. Paul told me to remember how I made it. I hope I always do.

The tubular pasta is a favorite of Paul's called Rigatoni. Because it's larger and hollow, you eat less than you think you do because there is so much air.

This meal was absolutely fun to make. I assure you, a solid vegetable meal like this can be cheap and fabulous. The asparagus and sweet potatoes came from Aldi, a rather unusual but wise grocery store, which is known for very reasonable prices on off-brand foods. A good number have recently opened up in Orlando. My experiences there in America and out of the country have been pleasant.

This was the first time we took Paul's parents, sister and brother-in-law to Ethos. I decided to try the pesto pasta with vegetables and pumpkin seeds. Paul chose the Pecan Encrusted Eggplant served with a side of mashed potatoes and gravy and asparagus. The eggplant was drizzled with a berry sauce. Both meals were served hot and appealing to the eyes.

I was feeling guilty about not having cooked a good, solid meal in a week as we had eaten out a lot with friends and had been on vacation. So when I came across a new variety of frozen vegetables in the grocery store, I took a chance.

I prefer Bird's Eye vegetables to other frozen vegetables because most of them come with some form of seasoning already added. You are actually allowed to experiment with flavor. In this case, we had sugar snap peas, asparagus, carrots and red bell peppers in a lime cilantro sauce. The dish could be microwaved or steamed on the stove. I chose the stove--however, you must watch the meal more closely in that case.