Healthy Baked Penne with Roasted Vegetables

• From: The Picky Eater

Ingredients

• 2 red peppers, cored and cut into 1-inch-wide strips

• 2 zucchini, quartered lengthwise and cut into 1-inch cubes

• 2 summer squash, quartered lengthwise and cut into 1-inch cubes

• 4 cremini mushrooms, halved

• 1 yellow onion, peeled and sliced into 1-inch strips

• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

• 1 tsp salt, divided

• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper, divided

• 1 Tbs dried Italian herb mix or herbs de Provence

• 1 lb penne pasta (I like whole wheat penne)

• 3 cups marinara sauce (store-bought or homemade)

• 1 1/2 cups frozen peas, thawed

• 1/2 cup grated smoked mozzarella

• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

• 1 cup grated fontina cheese

• 2 Tbs butter, cut into small pieces

A healthy version of baked ziti, this is one of those recipes that is comforting and homey, but also amazingly flavorful.

Directions

• Chop all the veggies and preheat your oven to 450°.
• On a baking sheet (or in a casserole dish/large pan), toss the peppers, zucchini, squash, mushrooms, and onions with olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and dried herbs. Roast until tender, about 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook for about 6 minutes. Since you will be cooking the pasta a second time in the oven, you want to make sure the inside is still hard. Drain in a colander.
• Once the veggies are done, toss the drained pasta with the roasted vegetables, marinara sauce, cheeses, peas, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. If you used a large casserole dish/pan to roast the veggies in, you can just dump all of the additional ingredients (pasta etc.) into that pan to mix everything together (that’s what I’d recommend!). Using a wooden spoon, gently mix, until all the pasta is coated with the sauce and the ingredients are combined.
• Top the pasta with the remaining cheese (about 1/3 cup).
• Bake until top is golden and cheese melts, about 25 minutes.