Prep: 15 minutes Bake ~20 Minutes

I had a request to make some vegetarian food so I pulled out one I’ve done before, but never for this blog. This is a simple pasta dish that is great as a side, or can be easily manipulated into a main dish. Cheesy, spinach and more make a simple but tasty meal. Chris kept eating it, and as picky as he is, that works for me.

Ingredients

• 8 oz of penne pasta

• 3 tbls butter

• 2 tbls butter melted

• 1 1/2 cup milk

• Spinach as desired

• 1/4 tsp basil

• salt to taste

• pepper to taste

• 3 tbls flour

• 2 cups mozzarella

• Some flavored crumb stuffing mix

1. Preheat oven to 350 F

2. Start the penne on the stove to get it soft, (boil water, in for at least 12 minutes)

3. While that is going, add the non melted butter, into a sauce pan on medium heat. When melted add the flour and stir until smooth

4. Add the milk and heat until it thicken. I hate thickening, cause I’m super bad at it and timing it right. You don’t want it to burn so keep stirring to check if it parts or not like the Dead Sea. Normally it should be around 6 minutes

5. Add the basil, salt and pepper

6. Add the spinach and stir til it wilts and mixes in

7. Drain the pasta and add to the mixture

8. Stir it all together, coat the penne. Make it all mixed good and well

9. Add the cheese and mix it while it melts

10. Add to a greased 8x8 baking pan

11. Mix the melted butter and bread crumbs and add to the top

12. Bake for about 20-25 minutes, or until browning on top

Afterthoughts

I love this dish. It’s simple and fast and taste great. I changed the bread crumbs to seasoned herbs and it added a whole new crunch and taste profile to this dish. It’s simple and basil is a great taste to base a sauce on. Simple, elegant and just enough to keep you excited. This is a fast easy, cheesy dish that people of all ages should love.