Whole Wheat Pesto Spaghetti with lots of vegetables

Whole Wheat Pesto Spaghetti with lots of vegetables:

Maintaining a nutritious meal and cooking wholesome dishes like Spaghetti pasta with lots of herbs are key to a healthy lifestyle. My recipe combines a tasty pesto sauce, hearty pasta and a variety of veggies, making it a great way to get in your nutritional needs. Whole Wheat spaghetti with a delicious home-made pesto, made with fresh basil, pine nuts, olive oil, garlic and salt. This healthy pasta dish serves up about three servings of your daily grains and vegetables.

Ingredients: 
1 tbsp. Pine nuts (toasted)
1 cup pesto sauce (for pesto recipe check early blog) 
1 cup fresh diced red, green and yellow bell papers 
1 cup diced baby corn 
1 cup diced zucchini 
1 cup diced onion
3-4 clove garlic grated 
1 tbsp. olive oil
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (plus more for serving)
1 bunch whole wheat Spaghetti (about 10 ounces if you’re measuring)
Salt to taste

Method: 

1. For making the pesto: Very finely chop 1 cup basil, 8 to 10 garlic, ½ cup of pine nuts, 1 cup of olive oil. Combine in a medium bowl. Add pinch of the Parmesan cheese (save the rest for garnish). Slowly whisk in enough olive oil to create a rough paste. Add salt and pepper to taste.

2. In a large pan, heat 2 teaspoons of olive oil on medium until hot. Add the onion and garlic and season with salt and pepper. Cook 2 to 3 minutes or until the onion has softened. Add the all the diced vegetables and season with salt and pepper. Cook 4 to 6 minutes, or until softened, stirring occasionally.

3. While the vegetables cook, add the whole wheat spaghetti to the boiling water, salt and 1 tbsp. of olive oil. Cook 10 to 12 minutes or until the pasta is all cooked (Don’t overcook). Remove from heat, drain thoroughly and set aside.

4. Add the cooked Spaghetti pasta and ½ cup of water to the pan of vegetables. Continue cooking, still on medium, 2 to 3 minutes, or until well combined and warmed through. Remove from heat and stir in the pesto and season with salt and pepper to taste.

5. To plate your dish, divide the pasta and vegetables between 2 bowls. Garnish with the remaining Parmesan cheese and pine nuts. Enjoy your healthy whole wheat pesto Spaghetti Pasta!

White pumpkin and pesto Soup:

White pumpkin and pesto Soup:

Ingredients: 
2 cups chopped white pumpkins
1 tsp basil 
1 tsp parsley
½ tsp black pepper
Salt to taste
1 tsp olive oil
6-8 pcs garlic
½ tsp ginger
Handful of pumpkin seeds
Cilantro leaves decoration
Method: 
Fry the pumpkin, garlic and ginger in the Olive oil/butter until softened. Add fresh basil leaves and parsley. Add a pint of the water and bring the pumpkin to a boil in the pressure cooker. Add handful of pumpkin seeds. Let it cool for a while and then use a blender, food processor or hand blender to puree it.
Bring the soup to a boil again. Add water needed, and then add this to the soup with some salt and pepper to taste. Chop the cilantro leaves.
Garnish each with the chopped cilantro leaves, some whipped cream and pumpkin seeds.
Serve the pumpkin soup immediately.


Tip: you can add cream also to make it testier. It is very good in summer because it is very cool vegetable.  
It is one of the vegetables which is very low calories;  provides just 26 cal per 100 g and contains no saturated fats or cholesterol; but is rich a source of dietary fiber, anti-oxidants, minerals, vitamins. You can control cholesterol and reduce your weight too. Pumpkin is a storehouse of many anti-oxidant vitamins such as vitamin-A, vitamin-C and vitamin-E.
It is also an excellent source of many natural poly-phenolic flavonoid compounds such as α and ß carotenes, cryptoxanthin, lutein and zeaxanthin. Carotenes convert into vitamin A inside the body.
Zea-xanthin is a natural anti-oxidant which has UV (ultra-violet) rays filtering actions in the macula lutea in reitina of the eyes. Thus, it helps protect from "age related macular disease" (ARMD) in the elderly.
Rich in B-complex group of vitamins like floats, niacin, vitamin B-6 (pyridoxine), thiamin and pantothenic acid.
It is also rich source of minerals like copper, calcium, potassium and phosphorus.