After a manic weekend we’re taking the time to spend as a family and all eat together. I’m hoping for an easy life, so I’m opting for pasta (which is never refused in our house!) but for a change I’m baking it into cake form. A kind of pasta bake crossed with frittata, for an Italian fusion dish.
Ingredients:
- 400g pasta
- 1 x small red onion, finely chopped
- 1 x courgette, diced
- 1 x garlic clove, crushed
- 1 x red pepper, diced
- 2 x handfuls spinach
- Small bunch basil, shredded
- 250g mixed beans
- 250g ricotta
- 2 x tbsp (vegetarian) Parmesan, grated
- 4 x eggs, beaten
Cook the pasta for 7 minutes – it wants to be slightly underdone so it doesn’t go too soggy when baked. Drain and reserve.
Cook the onion in olive oil for a few minutes, then add the pepper, courgette and garlic. Stir in the mixed beans and the spinach until it wilts down.
In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs and ricotta together. Season with salt and pepper and grate in the Parmesan. Add the cooked veg, pasta and basil and stir well until everything is evenly coated in the egg mixture.
Tip into a lined, greased cake tin and press down. Bake at 180C for 30 minutes. Grate extra Parmesan on top of the cake and cook for a further 10 minutes.
Cut into wedges and serve with salad and garlic bread.
The Eldest Boy found another favourite in tonight’s meal. Mathilde was even happy, despite it taking her two attempts to eat her cake as she was so slow and had to reheat it. Nonetheless, she ate it and I was happy we all had more than five minutes to eat a proper meal together.
365 Meals 