Cook This:

I had a light salad planned for our supper tonight... which would be enjoyed while watching Our Commander in Chief speak about his health care reform plan to The Congress and Nation. We uncorked a bottle of wine, and I started staring at the television... and the huge (seriously it was massive) red ripe heirloom tomato - from a farm down the hill - on the counter. My mind wandered and I started thinking about the fresh buffalo mozzarella in the fridge, the huge bunch of basil in a vase... and decided we needed something more substantial than a salad. Why not toss the ingredients of a Caprese Salad with a little pasta and bake it all up?

Caprese Salad Reform! Brilliant!

I rinsed the fresh buffalo mozzarella and squeezed it dry in paper towels - then ran it through a grater. I also threw in a little bit of grated pecorino (just because I had it around), a large handful of chopped basil and added it to a little boiled pasta. (Of course, I used whole-wheat penne - and you know it was organic.) Then I added the entire huge heirloom tomato - chopped into big chunks.  I placed the entire mess in an 8x8-inch baking dish and topped it with a handful of smashed croutons and baked it for 30 minutes in a hot oven. Dinner was served.

Caprese Pasta Bake


Caprese Pasta Bake

I swear, it tasted just like a Caprese Salad and it smelled just like a Caprese Salad...  except it was loaded with yummy carbs. Hmmm... on second thought, maybe it smelled like a Pizza Margherita?

Hopefully the new health plan will cover carb overdose.

Until my next update, I remain, your healthy correspondent.