If you want to feel full by eating less pasta, the smart thing to do is to prepare a sauce with lots of vegetables. The vegetables fill the “gap” on the plate, giving the impression of having a full plate in front of you! This is a trick to use especially at the beginning of a diet, when our stomach still needs a lot of food before it receives the signal of satiety.
And since I love peppers, I use them often; they fill you up and have many good nutritional properties. I know we are almost at the end of the season, but luckily I am still finding them at a good price. So, a few days ago, I took some pictures of my dish and here I am sharing this recipe with you!
No special effects here except for a few tricks to use when you want to limit oil to a minimum. Please, though, don’t eliminate it entirely: a little oil is always needed to properly absorb the vegetables. Let’s see how to make this delicious recipe, which is also suitable for those following a vegan diet.
I’ll also leave you some other ideas with pasta and lots of vegetables:
- Difficulty: Very Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Preparation time: 5 Minutes
- Portions: 2
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Healthy
- Seasonality: Summer, Autumn
Ingredients
In the photo among the ingredients, you see whole spelt sedanini and in other photos whole rigatoni.
- 5.3 oz whole wheat pasta
- 2 peppers
- 1 red onion
- 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil (2 measuring teaspoons)
- 7.1 oz tomato passata
- to taste basil (fresh)
- to taste salt
- to taste pepper
- Points per serving = 8 WW points
Tools
- Pan Ballarini Cortina Granitium 28 cm
Steps
First, prepare the vegetables: slice the onion thinly and cut the peppers into strips.
Sauté the onion with a teaspoon of oil and a little water in a large non-stick pan while you heat the water for the pasta.
When the onion is softened, add the peppers and cook them over high heat for a few minutes, then lower the heat, cover, and let them cook for about 10 minutes. Ensure the sauce doesn’t dry out too much; if it does, add a splash of water.
Once the peppers are softened, add the tomato passata, some basil, and salt. Continue cooking the sauce while dropping the pasta.
Add some pasta cooking water to the sauce to prevent it from drying out and to make it creamier.
Finally, when the pasta is cooked, drain it and add it to the sauce. Add the second teaspoon of oil, more fresh basil, and give it a final stir to blend the flavors.
And here is our light whole wheat pasta with peppers ready to be served at the table!
Really excellent, so flavorful and light… just add a protein of your choice, maybe a green salad with some legumes, to serve a complete meal for few Weight Watchers points.
Bon appétit to everyone!
by Giovanna Buono
