Anything But Corn-Fed: Healthy College Cooking in Rural Iowa

So I realized that almost everything I make now is inspired by the cheese that I get from Guinevere. Here are two more dishes that I made with them that turned out well, one with feta and the other with chevre. I am busy snacking on some cheddar and crackers as well!

From recipezaar:

Alexandra’s Feta Pasta (I don’t know Alexandra, jus the name of the recipe!)

1 (16 oz) bag frozen chopped spinach

2 (14 1/2 oz) cans diced tomatoes (one with Italian seasoning the other with onion and garlic)

1 onion, choppped

8 oz crumbled feta (but you can use more or less, I probably used less)

2/3 cup heavy whipping cream

1 tbl olive oil

16 oz pasta (something large, short, and shapely like ziti… I used multigrain)

1/4 cup fresh parmesan, grated

4 cloves garlic, minced

salt, crushed red pepper, and pepper, to taste

Preheat the oven to 350 F and defrost the spinach. Boil water for pasta according to package directions in a saucepan. Meanwhile, saute the onion in in the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once onions are soft, add the garlic, then the tomatoes (partially drained) and the drained spinach. Drain the pasta when cooked and put half in a 9″x13″ pan. Put half the veggies on top, half the feta, and half the cream (and seasoning). Mix together and repeat. Sprinkle the parmesan on top, cover with foil, and bake for 30 minutes. Take the foil off for the last few minutes to get a crusty top. Some people suggested adding bacon, green peppers, Italian sausage, or chicken breast, but I thought it was pretty good as is!

This recipe tastes really good and is simple to make but I am not always a big fan of using canned tomatoes and frozen spinach. Frankly, this time of year produces pretty watery tomatoes at the grocery store and there is no farmer’s market to speak of so canned seemed like a good alternative and I gave in.

Another recipe I tried was just jazzed up cous cous. I have had three boxes of “Roasted Garlic and Olive Oil” cous cous sitting in my pantry for at least a year so I finally decided to cook one. To make it more of a complete meal, I added bits of chevre and chopped fresh spinach. So try that too!