Build-Your-Own Pasta Salad Because It's Too Darn Hot To Cook

It has been so stinkin' hot here lately.  Honestly, I don't know how all you Southern people do it, bless your hearts!  Yesterday hovered somewhere around the 110F mark.  All day.  In Wisconsin.

We don't do that here. 

I don't know about you, but this Mom isn't cooking a darn thing today.

Three weeks ago (my last post - I'm sorry), my daughter caught some annoying illness from camp.  She then brought whatever it was home, and then my son ended up with it.  And then, naturally, it took me out for several days.  How my husband didn't catch it is beyond me, but good for him because it stunk.  At any rate, I've been trying to get caught up with everything, and this heat is really dragging me down.  But, it's coming together.  Slowly.  And tonight for dinner, I'm not cooking at all.  (You can't see it, but my grin is large, my friends.  Large, indeed.)

I decided to do a Build-Your-Own Pasta Salad dinner using nothing more than the pasta salad ingredients I generally reach for, and only what I had on hand (because the inside of my car is infinitely hotter than the air outside and I don't want to get into it).   Plus, I'm in no mood to listen to anyone complain about a dinner not made-to-order, customized specifically to what each individual likes...I don't get paid enough.  So...

Is it just me, or does this photo look a little too 1950's cheesy cookbook-like?

Onto a platter I piled all the fun veggies, cheese, olives, herbs, and beans I had in the cupboard, freezer and refrigerator.  Leftover chicken or beef is good, too, if you have it (I didn't).  In this picture, you can see that I made some self-serve piles of tomatoes, bell pepper, Cannellini and Garbanzo beans, black and green olives, red onion, and cucumber, as well as some fun little mozzarella balls (chunked fresh mozzarella works just fine as well) and diced feta cheese.  I tossed in some fresh basil, oregano and thyme, too, to be torn at the plate.  You can use whatever you have on hand; shredded carrots, sliced radishes, chopped spinach or arugula, and/or some spunky Asiago or some great Parmesan cheese would be all great additional choices as well.

Those toppings are mixed with some penne or rotini or fusilli pasta, cooked, cooled, and tossed with some olive oil to prevent sticking and a few sprinkles of red wine vinegar or lemon juice, salt and pepper for extra flavor.

Set out a couple of your favorite vinaigrettes to dress the salad.  I had a red wine and balsamic Italian vinaigrette in the fridge, and I made a Lemon Oregano Vinagrette for those members of my family who love lemon.

Set out the salt and pepper grinder, maybe add a little fruit and some crusty bread, if you want, and dinner is served; everyone heaps a pile of pasta onto their plates then adds what they like, topping it with the herbs and vinaigrette of their choice.

And everything can be made ahead of time and refrigerated.

And the kitchen remains cool.

And so does Mom.

(And yes, those are the Cheeky French Chefs of all Crappy Pictures France on my wine cooler thingamajob. You missed the ice cubes in my red wine glass; Baby, if loving this is wrong, I don't want to be right - it's too darn hot to care.)

Macaroni and Cheese with Fresh Herbs

The weather in Wisconsin is so unreliable.  After several days of temperatures in the 80s and 90s, the temperature dropped about 30 degrees to cool, windy, rainy weather.  And with that weather, came an immediate appetite shift from salads and fresh vegetables and fruits to warm, creamy comfort foods.  It's amazing how our bodies work with the weather, isn't it?

Not willing to completely succumb to the craving because I really wanted to use all the fresh herbs proliferating in my garden, I decided to make a baked macaroni and cheese that still remained decidedly spring-like by using more delicately flavored cheeses than the traditional sharp cheddar and several of those fresh, flavorful herbs.  The result was a lovely, elegant, creamy macaroni and cheese that practically burst with the bright flavors of the herbs.

The method for a baked macaroni and cheese is the same as a stove-top macaroni and cheese.  In fact, it is all made on the stove-top, then assembled, topped with a buttered crumb mixture, and baked until golden and bubbly.  To make everything go smoothly, it is best to get your ingredients together in individual bowls before you start; combine the cheeses and herbs, garlic and mustard in one bowl for quick and easy dumping into the pot of warm milk, and the topping in another.

Macaroni and Cheese with Fresh Herbs
serves 4-6

• 8 oz medium size shell shaped pasta
• 1/4 c butter
• 1/4 c flour
• 2 c milk (preferably whole milk)
• 1 1/2 c (6 oz) Fontina cheese, shredded
• 1/2 c (2 oz) Parmesan cheese, shredded (not grated)
• 1 large clove garlic, pressed
• 1 Tbs fresh oregano, chopped
• 2 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped
• 1 tsp fresh marjoram, chopped
• 1 tsp dijon mustard
• 3/4 tsp salt
• few grinds freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 c dried bread crumbs
• 1/4 c Asiago cheese, grated (you can use Parmesan if  you'd like)
• 2 Tbs butter, melted
• 1 Tbs fresh parsley, chopped

Preheat oven to 375F.  Butter a 2qt baking pan.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Boil pasta according to package directions.  Drain and set aside.

In medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter.  Whisk in the flour and cook for several seconds until the mixture is bubbly.  Slowly, whisking constantly, pour in the milk.  Continue to whisk until the milk mixture has thickened and just begins to form the first thick bubble or two, about 3-4 minutes.  Stir in the Fontina, Parmesan, garlic, oregano, rosemary, marjoram, dijon, salt, and pepper.  Remove from heat and continue to stir until the cheese melts.

Toss the pasta with the cheese sauce and pour into the buttered pan.

In a small bowl, combine the breadcrumbs, Asiago, melted butter, and parsley.

Sprinkle over the macaroni and cheese.

Bake in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, or until the crumbs are browned and the cheese is bubbly.

Mushroom Ravioli

Making ravioli can be tedious and time consuming...if you let it. Since I like to have a freezer full of little stuffed pastas for easy and delicious meals even the kids can make, I choose to look forward to making them.  I mean, I purposely find it enjoyable.  I'm not going to kid you - while it's not difficult at all, it is a bit time intensive; the dough takes time, the filling takes time, then putting it all together takes time.  It can easily take up to three hours if you choose to do everything all at once. But here's the thing - you can choose to enjoy the cooking time with your family, or you can plug your ears with a good audio book or album while you prepare several meals of ravioli.  You can also make it a fun social gathering by inviting some friends over for a ravioli making party; each person brings [a bottle of wine and] enough ingredients to make different fillings to share with everyone.

You can split the time by making the filling and dough when you have time and just pop it in the fridge until you are ready to assemble everything. Regardless of how you choose to enjoy your time making the ravioli, you will end up with several delicious homemade meals (even more if you choose the friend option) for what essentially comes down to not a lot of work (just a fair bit of time).  To keep it simple to follow, I've broken the recipe down into three parts: the dough, the filling, the meal.

The dough for the ravioli  is prepared exactly the same as any pasta dough; you can see the photos for the preparation method in my post for Lemon Fettuccine.


Ravioli Dough:

• 2 c unbleached all purpose flour
• 1 c whole wheat flour
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• 1 Tbs olive oil
• 4 eggs
• 2-4 Tbs water, as needed

Place the flour and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the dough blade.  Pulse to mix. With the machine running on dough speed, pour the olive oil down the chute.  Drop the eggs down the chute one at a time.  Add water, 1 Tbs at a time, until the dough catches and forms a ball.  Turn the machine off, remove the dough to a lightly floured surface.  Knead a few times until the dough is smooth.  Form the dough into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least an hour (or up to 8 hours).

Meanwhile, make the mushroom filling.


Mushroom Filling:

• 1 oz dried porcini mushrooms plus 1 cup boiling water
• 3 Tbs butter
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 c onion, finely diced
• 1 1/4 lb assorted mushrooms (portobello, cremini, shitake, oyster, button, etc...), stems removed, wiped clean and chopped
• 1/3 c dry red wine
• 1/4 c water from porcini mushrooms (above)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 c freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 c fresh parsley, finely chopped
• 2 Tbs heavy cream

Place the porcini mushrooms in a small bowl.  Pour boiling water over and set aside for about 20-30 minutes or until mushrooms are hydrated and tender.

Reserve 1/4 cup of the porcini water. Finely chop and add them to the rest of the mushrooms. 

Melt the butter in a 12" skillet over medium heat. Stir in the onions and garlic. Saute until onions are translucent and garlic is fragrant.

Add the mushrooms.  Cook for about 6-8 minutes, or until tender and volume has reduced by about half, stirring often.

Pour the wine and porcini water over the mushrooms.  Season with salt and pepper.  Cook another 5-6 minutes, or until the liquid has evaporated, stirring occasionally.

Mix in the Parmesan, parsley, and cream.  Cook for 1 minute more.

Remove from heat and allow to cool. Refrigerate until ready to assemble the ravioli.

Mushroom Ravioli
makes about 60 ravioli

• 1 recipe ravioli dough (see above)
• 1 recipe mushroom filling (see above)
• flour for dusting
• Sundried Tomato Alfredo Sauce (optional)

Line 2-3 baking sheets with waxed paper.  Set aside.

Lightly dust working surface with flour.

To roll out the dough, tear off 1/4 of the dough (cover the rest with the plastic wrap or towel).  Press the dough into a rectangle with your fingers.  Run it through the widest setting of your pasta machine (on mine it is #7) about three times, folding it into thirds each time.  If it's misshapen, don't sweat it - you'll fix it shortly. Turn the setting one notch thinner, fold the dough into thirds, and feed it through again.

The dough should be about 14" long.  Cut it in half.

Fold each half into thirds one more time and feed through. Continue lowering the setting each successive time (no more need to fold, just feed) until dough is thin enough (about 1/32, or  until you can see a nice shadow when you hold your hand behind the strip of dough).  *If dough gets sticky while working with it, dust it lightly with flour before running it back through the pasta machine.

Place the dough strips on a lightly floured surface.

Trim the wonky edges, and cut each strip of dough with a sharp knife or pizza cutter lengthwise, leaving one half slightly larger than the other (you will fill the thinner strip, and cover with the wider, so we are allowing the extra room to cover the filling).

Starting about 3/4" in from the edges, mound about 1 heaping teaspoon (the measuring kind, not the the soup kind) of filling on the thinner dough strip.  Continue down the length of the strip, leaving about 1 inch between mounds.

With a pastry brush dipped in water, carefully wet the edges. Don't be too messy with it because if the water leaks off the sides, it will make the dough stick to the counter and it will be hard to pick it up (or scrape off).

Carefully lift the larger dough strip over the filling.  Seal by pressing down around each mound, taking care to press any air out before finally sealing each mound.  Brush any excess flour from the dough with a dry pastry brush.

Using either a knife, pizza cutter, or fancy ravioli cutter, cut each of the mounds into squares.  If you'd like, use a fork to decorate the edges (just take care not to puncture the pasta with the tines).

If you do puncture or tear the pasta, you can try to fix it by twisting the dough to seal calzone-style.

 Place the ravioli in a single layer on baking sheets lined with waxed paper. Continue these steps with the rest of the pasta dough.

To freeze, place the filled baking sheet in the freezer for a few hours. When the ravioli is frozen, remove the pastas to a freezer bag or other freezer safe container.

To boil (fresh or frozen), bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Carefully add the ravioli and gently boil 3-6 minutes for fresh, 5-8 minutes for frozen, or until the pasta is tender and they all float to the top.

Drain and serve with your favorite sauce.  Try it with Sundried Tomato Alfredo Sauce...so good!

May is #pastalove month!

Please join in on the #pastalove fun by linking up any pasta recipe from the month of May 2012. Don't forget to link back to this post, so that your readers know to come stop by the #pastalove event! The twitter hashtag is #pastalove :).

Cohosted by:

Astig Vegan, Badger Girl Learns to Cook, BigFatBaker, Bon a Croquer, Cake Duchess, Elephant Eats, Hobby and More, Mis Pensamientos, No One likes Crumbley Cookies, Oh Cake, Rico sin Azucar, Simply Reem,Soni's Food for Thought, Teaspoon of Spice, That Skinny Chick Can Bake!!!, The Spicy RD, The Wimpy Vegetarian, Vegetarian Mama, You Made That?, Vegan Yack Attack. 

Pasta Primavera

Primavera translated from Italian means springtime, or spring-like.  A pasta primavera is a simple dish of pasta (usually fettuccine or penne or farfalle) and lightly sauteed spring vegetables, tossed with a light sauce usually made from broth, butter, cream, and cheese.

As I mentioned in my Lemon Fettuccine post, while out for dinner, I ordered what should have been some pasta with seasonal vegetables and a cream sauce (in the case of this particular restaurant, the cream sauce is thicker, like an alfredo, and is usually a richer sauce than a traditional Primavera, which I knew because I had eaten it there before).  Instead, what arrived was a repulsive mix of fettuccine tossed with an obviously microwaved frozen broccoli/cauliflower/carrot mix plopped into a puddle of corn oil an inch deep and smothered with what I think was canned Parmesan.  We called it "I Can't Believe It's Not Alfredo" (or, more accurately, "I Can't Believe You Thought This Could Pass For Alfredo").  My fancy-pants phone was broken and I was waiting for the replacement to show up, or I would have taken a picture of it for you - it was pretty unbelievable.

Here's the deal:  one cannot make a Primavera sauce without using real, fresh ingredients.  In any case, especially in the case of one with a thicker type sauce, real butter, real cream, and real Parmesan (or, more ideally, Parmigiano Reggiano) must be used.  Margarines or other oil-based spreads just won't cut it; they ultimately separate and leave your dinner drowning in an unappetizing pool of icky oil (as is evidenced in my dinner out).  And since that canned Parmesan isn't allowed in my humble home kitchen, I fully expect a chef charging $15 for a plate of pasta not to be using it, either.

So, here is how I make our Pasta Primavera.  Try to use a combination of the freshest vegetables you can find.  In this one, I used what I had on hand: asparagus, spring onions, pea pods (and frozen peas because little sweet peas are so yummy!), baby zucchini, carrots, and a few broccoli florets.  In the depth of summer, go ahead and use fresh green beans, cauliflower, and whatever else suits you.  Shoot for about 4 cups of those vegetables for 1lb of fettuccine.  Keep the size small and thinly sliced so they will cook quickly and fit nicely on a fork without needing to cut them on the plate.

I like to keep the frozen peas frozen so it will cool the simmering broth and vegetables, allowing for the cream to be safely added without risk of separation.  Don't be worried about the thinness of the sauce after adding the cream and cheese; it will be thick enough to coat the vegetables and pasta will absorb some of it - it will be lovely.  I promise.

And don't forget the salt and pepper.  Since everyone has a different idea about how much salt makes a dish taste good, and some broths, butters, and cheese have a higher salt content than others, I have left out the measurements.  Keep in mind that salt naturally brings out the flavors of every single ingredient in this dish, so be sure to give it a taste test to be sure you've added enough.

Pasta Primavera
serves 5-6

• 1 lb lemon fettuccine
• 2 Tbs butter
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 cups assorted fresh, seasonal vegetables, cut into bite size pieces
• 1 c vegetable broth
• 1/2 c frozen sweet peas (no need to thaw)
• 1 c heavy cream
• 1/4 c fresh basil, roughly chopped
• 1 c grated Parmesan cheese (the real stuff, please)
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1/4 c fresh parsley, roughly chopped

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil for the pasta.

In a large skillet, melt butter over medium heat.  Add the garlic and stir until fragrant; about 1 minute.

Toss in the fresh vegetables.  Pour the broth over all, cover, and cook until the vegetables are crisp tender; about 3 minutes.

Meanwhile, add fresh fettuccine to the boiling pasta pot.  Cook about 3-6 minutes, or until al dente.  Drain.

Uncover the steaming vegetables.  Add the frozen peas and give it a stir.  Slowly add the cream and basil.  Bring to a low simmer. Stir in the Parmesan cheese until melted.

Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Toss the cooked fettuccine with the cream and vegetable mixture and parsley.

Serve immediately.

And don't forget to check out all the #pastalove recipes all May long!

May is #pastalove month!

Please join in on the #pastalove fun by linking up any pasta recipe from the month of May 2012. Don't forget to link back to this post, so that your readers know to come stop by the #pastalove event! The twitter hashtag is #pastalove :).

Cohosted by:

Astig Vegan, Badger Girl Learns to Cook, BigFatBaker, Bon a Croquer, Cake Duchess, Elephant Eats, Hobby and More, Mis Pensamientos, No One likes Crumbley Cookies, Oh Cake, Rico sin Azucar, Simply Reem,Soni's Food for Thought, Teaspoon of Spice, That Skinny Chick Can Bake!!!, The Spicy RD, The Wimpy Vegetarian, Vegetarian Mama, You Made That?, Vegan Yack Attack. 

Homemade Pasta (Lemon Fettuccine)

Tim and I went out for dinner the other night, which is something we don't regularly do.  I ordered the Vegetable Primavera, knowing full well that it wasn't so much a primavera as an alfredo with vegetables because I had ordered it at this restaurant before.  Usually it was rich and creamy, packed full of veggies and pasta.  But the delivered dish was so repulsive, swimming in corn oil, peppered with microwaved vegetables, and topped with canned Parmesan. I feel nauseous just thinking about it. This experience has spurred not just one post, but two to fully explain how a decent Primavera is made.  This first post will deal with the pasta, and in the next (later this week), I will explain to you just exactly how to achieve a lovely, lightly creamy, super flavorful, seasonal Primavera using these lemony noodles that looks exactly like this one:

Dried pasta is my friend, and I use it often.  However, in a dish that relies primarily (or at least equally with its sauce or other ingredients), fresh is sometimes best.  This recipe is one I like to use for my Pasta Primavera because the fresh tasting lemony fettuccine adds so much brightness and zing to the final dish, but you can always adjust it to plain fettuccine by leaving out the lemon and lemon juice (make up for the lack of lemon juice with water if extra hydration is necessary).  This particular Lemon Fettuccine is also lovely just tossed with butter or extra virgin olive oil, fresh herbs, salt and pepper.

Some pasta making instructions can seem daunting.  The truth is that it is one of the easiest things in the world to do and very difficult to mess up. Making fresh pasta is super easy - don't let anyone tell you differently. The reason it is a staple on so many old school tables is because the ingredients are meager and the work is simple.  I learned to make it on a counter top (sans a bowl) by piling the flour, making a well, cracking the eggs into the center, and mixing with my hands.  While you certainly can do this, honestly, a food processor is extremely nice because it does all the work for you.  As I was learning in this rudimentary, most therapeutic way, I also learned to pat the dough with my hands and roll it to thickness with a rolling pin, then cut it into strips or shapes with a knife.  However, a pasta machine is much, much nicer; not only does it yield a more uniform noodle, but it saves time and your arms won't ache afterward.  My el-cheapo manual pasta machine cost about $32 and came with a spaghetti and fettuccine attachment, and being the non-gadget gal that I am, I feel pretty darn good about that investment.  A drying rack is something I've never invested in though, opting for anything from wooden spoons and rolling pins to sideways cooling racks (in my pictures today) and occasionally clothes hangers to hang the pasta out to dry.  Hey, don't judge; cooking good food isn't about spending a bunch of money on something that can be done without. 

Oh, one more thing: because I use whole wheat flour in this recipe, the dough isn't immediately sticky and elastic.  Rather, it's kind of stiff.  That's okay - you haven't done anything wrong.  After it rests for a while, it's very workable and the final, plated result is lovely.

May is also #pastalove month.  Below this recipe you will find a list of the co-hosts this month and the on-going collection of pasta dishes from all over the blogosphere! 

Lemon Fettuccine
makes about 1 lb fettuccine

• 1 c unbleached white flour
• 1 c whole wheat flour
• 2 Tbs  lemon zest
• 1/4 tsp coarse salt
• 1 Tbs lemon juice
• 1 Tbs olive oil
• 3 eggs
• 1-2 Tbs water, as needed

In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the dough blade, add the flours, lemon zest, and salt.  Pulse to mix.

With the processor running, add the lemon juice, olive oil, and eggs (one at a time) down the chute.  Add water, 1 Tbs at a time until dough collects into a ball.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface.  Knead a few times (dough will be stiff).

Form into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap, and set aside for about 30 minutes to let the gluten do its thing (the dough will be more pliable after it rests).

Divide the dough into quarters.  For each quarter, press into a rectangular shape with your hands.  Feed the dough through a pasta machine set to the widest setting (on my machine, that number is 7).  Each time the dough comes through, fold into thirds the long way and refeed; do this about 4 or 5 times at the same wide setting.

For each successive feed, reduce the size by one; feed the dough through.  Cut the dough in half when it gets too long to handle.  Continue until the dough is roughly 1/16" thick (on my machine, I stop at the #3 setting). *If the dough is looking less than smooth during this process, sprinkle with a little flour before passing through the press.

As you are feeding the dough, it will get longer; cut the dough into a manageable length if necessary.  Feed the thin sheets through the fettuccine slicer (or slice it with a pizza cutter or sharp knife into 1/4" strips).

Lightly toss the strips in flour, shaking off the excess.  Toss over drying rack, and continue on with the rest of the dough.

Your mess should look something like this:

To dry, just leave the pasta on the rack until fully dried.

To refrigerate, leave it on the rack until partially dry, grab a bunch, lightly wrap around your hand to form a nest, place in a plastic bag and refrigerate until ready to use (a day or two is best; if you need to store it longer, freeze it up to 3 months)

To cook (immediately or otherwise), bring a pot of salted water to a rapid boil.  Add the pasta and reduce heat to medium.  Boil 3-6 minutes, or until cooked to desired tenderness.

May is #pastalove month!

Please join in on the #pastalove fun by linking up any pasta recipe from the month of May 2012. Don't forget to link back to this post, so that your readers know to come stop by the #pastalove event! The twitter hashtag is #pastalove :).

Cohosted by:

Astig Vegan, Badger Girl Learns to Cook, BigFatBaker, Bon a Croquer, Cake Duchess, Elephant Eats, Hobby and More, Mis Pensamientos, No One likes Crumbley Cookies, Oh Cake, Rico sin Azucar, Simply Reem,Soni's Food for Thought, Teaspoon of Spice, That Skinny Chick Can Bake!!!, The Spicy RD, The Wimpy Vegetarian, Vegetarian Mama, You Made That?, Vegan Yack Attack. 

Roasted Asparagus and Mushroom Pasta

The most iconic vegetable of Spring has to be asparagus.  We adore it, but we only eat it in the spring while it is in season because it looses so much flavor and texture the further it has to travel to get here.   I've spoken with quite a few "asparagus haters" who have only purchased asparagus from the stores that had been shipped in, out of season, from a couple thousand miles away; it's no wonder they don't like it - I don't either.  If you have never eaten fresh, local asparagus, you really can't know how amazing asparagus is. The asparagus in the stores from other countries is a completely different beast than the gorgeous, crisp, green asparagus you'll find this time of year (and into May and even June in some areas).  Several times each week, we incorporate these little gems of spring into salads, or we roast, saute or grill them, and we savor every bite knowing the season is fairly short.  Our favorite way to eat them is dressed in some olive oil, pressed garlic, salt and pepper, and then roasted or grilled...oh my.

Sunshine and warmer weather promising fresh fruits and vegetables to come makes meal planning so much simpler.  I love just enjoying the exceptional flavors of those fresh ingredients; so many of our summer meals center around the brilliance of those seasonal fruits and vegetables and, more often than not, need little more than a few herbs and some salt and pepper. In this dish, a few modestly seasoned vegetables, some whole-grain pasta, and a little cheese create an easy, delicious, quick dinner.  I like to serve it with some homemade garlic bread and fresh fruit.

Roasted Asparagus and Mushroom Pasta
serves 6

• 1 1/2 lbs fresh asparagus, tough ends trimmed, cut into 2-inch pieces
• 8 oz cremini mushrooms, quartered
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into approximately 1-inch pieces
• 3 cloves garlic, pressed
• 3 Tbs olive oil, divided
• 2 Tbs balsamic vinegar, divided
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 8-10 oz whole grain farfalle (bow-tie or butterfly) or penne pasta
• 3/4 c freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish

Preheat oven to 450F.  Lightly oil 2 15x10" jellyroll pans (cookie sheets with sides).

In a large bowl, combine asparagus, mushrooms, bell pepper, garlic, 2 Tbs olive oil, 1 Tbs balsamic vinegar, and oregano.  Mix well to coat.

Divide the mixture evenly between the prepared pans.  Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Roast in preheated oven 9-12 minutes, or until vegetables are crisp tender, stirring halfway through the cooking time.

Meanwhile, bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta according to package directions.  Drain, reserving 1 cup of pasta water.

Combine roasted vegetables and pasta in a large bowl.  Stir in the Parmesan, remaining 1 Tbs olive oil, remaining 1 Tbs balsamic vinegar, and enough pasta water keep the mixture moist (you probably won't need the entire cup). Adjust salt and pepper.

Serve topped with more Parmesan cheese.