This might be a bit embarrassing for me, but I’m sharing with you the meal I eat most. This is my single girl supper; it’s nothing fancy or complicated. I never tire of it, and any chance I get to make this meal, I do. My husband claims to not like pickled or briny flavors, and this pasta is chock full of pickled things, like marinated artichoke hearts and olives. So, I make it when I’m alone, and I enjoy it alone. It’s a vegetarian masterpiece, if I say so myself. It begins with sauteed golden brown mushrooms and garlic, and ends with juicy sundried tomatoes, green olives, and artichoke hearts in a white wine sauce. The best part is that you’ll have the rest of the wine to enjoy with the meal. Using part of the white wine for cooking and the rest for serving is my best kitchen trick. I’m not great at food and wine pairing, but if I serve the wine I cooked with, I know it’s going to work! The entire sauce comes together in one pan while you cook the pasta. In just minutes, you can have noodles coated in a silky buttery wine sauce, studded with the best Mediterranean flavors: sun-dried tomatoes, artichoke hearts, olives, lemon zest, and mushrooms. Ok, mushrooms aren’t exactly Mediterranean, but when they turn golden brown and crisp around the edges in a dish, they serve as the meaty component to the dish, and we don’t complain one bit!
Healthy Mediterranean Pasta Ingredients:
Unsalted Butter. Just a small amount of butter goes a long way in coating all of the noodles and making this sauce silky and slightly creamy. Olive Oil. I like to use extra virgin because it has the freshest, grassy flavor. We’re not cooking it for very long, so you can use your best olive oil for this recipe. Pasta. We’re using a thin angel hair spaghetti, and I prefer whole wheat angel hair. You can use any kind of noodle you like for this Mediterranean pasta dish. Mushrooms. A half pound of white button or cremini mushrooms, sliced. Garlic. Three cloves, minced. Dry White Wine. A dry (not sweet) white wine that you like to drink. We’re using it to deglaze the pan; I like a crisp Sauvignon Blanc from Northern California. If you avoid wine, you may use 2 tablespoons of chicken broth or 2 tablespoons of lemon juice in its place. Artichoke Hearts. Marinated artichoke hearts come in a clear, glass jar, typically. The canned artichoke hearts are stored in only water. Using marinated artichokes brings even more Mediterranean flavors to this recipe, because they’re marinated in olive oil, lemon and Italian seasonings. Sun-dried Tomatoes. Grab the sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil, not dry. The ones packed in oil are usually in the jarred olives section, and they’re meatier and more chewy when they’re soaked in oil. Olives. Speaking of olive, I use green Castelvetrano olives, but you can use whatever you like the most. I prefer olives from the olive bar of a grocery store rather than canned because they taste fresher. Lemon Zest. We just need the zest to bring a fresh bite, but you can use the juice instead of wine (read above).
How to make:
What to Serve with Mediterranean Pasta:
A salad would be great on the side, especially this beetroot and feta salad with arugula. If you love artichokes as much as we do, you would like my brown butter risotto with grilled artichokes!
What wine goes with Mediterranean Pasta:
This is a frequently asked question here on Dessert for Two, with any recipe that requires wine. My lobster risotto requires a white wine to deglaze the pan, and I would use the same one here. I prefer a Sauvignon Blanc wine from Northern California. Other alternatives are a Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand, a Chardonnay or a dry Riesling. Whatever you do, do not use sweet wine. Always cook with a wine that you like drinking so that you can serve the rest with dinner! These same wines can be used for my Chicken Francaise recipe, too!
How many calories in Mediterranean Pasta:
A few years ago, I implemented a calorie counter on my recipe card. You can scroll to the bottom of the recipe card and see that each serving of this pasta has over 600 calories. It’s a hearty vegetarian dinner full of vegetables that I feel good about eating.
Olive Oil: I like to use extra virgin becausewe’re not cooking it for very long.Pasta: Thin angel hair spaghetti is my first choice, especially whole wheat angel hair (if you can find it). You can use any kind of noodle you like for this Mediterranean pasta dish.Mushrooms: 8 ounces of white button or cremini mushrooms, sliced before cooking.Dry White Wine: A dry (not sweet) white wine to deglaze the pan; I like a crisp Sauvignon Blanc from Northern California. If you don’t want to use wine, you may use 2 tablespoons of chicken broth or 2 tablespoons of lemon juice in its place. In this case, do not reduce the wine or juice in step 3.Artichoke Hearts: Marinated artichoke hearts come in a clear, glass jar or in the olive bar at your grocery store. Do not use canned artichoke hearts, as they are stored in only water. Sun-dried Tomatoes: You want the sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil, not dried tomatoes. Olives: I use green Castelvetrano olives, but you can use whatever you like the most. I prefer olives from the olive bar of a grocery store rather than canned because they taste fresher.
