Meatless Monday with Linguine della via di Grotta Pinta

Hello and welcome (back) to the blog and thank you for joining us for another Meatless Monday. Miratel Solutions took the Meatless Monday pledge as part of our CSR business initiatives in support of reducing meat consumption by 15% to improve personal health and the health of the planet. You can learn more about the positive impact of giving up meat just one day per week by visiting meatlessmonday.com.

Today’s recipe for Linguine della via di Grotta Pinta comes via Green Kitchen Stories and you can read the charming story behind this delicious summer pasta recipe here. They recommend that you keep a few tips to keep in mind to make this recipe the best it can be: 1. Use the best vegetables you can find (make sure the tomatoes smell tomato). 2. Chop the vegetables in large chunks. 3. Don’t let the vegetables saute too long, they should just be tossed around a couple of times in the hot frying pan. 4. Use a lot of olive oil to bring out the flavors.
Make sure the tomatoes smell like tomato is the perfect way to describe a good tomato from a not-as-good-tomato. I’ll have to remember that one.

Linguine della via di Grotta Pinta image courtesy of Johanna Frenkel from greenkitchenstories.com

Linguine della via di Grotta Pinta – Serves 4

• linguine for 4 persons (nowadays we use a gluten free buckwheat or brown rice linguine)
• olive oil
• 1 onion
• 2 cloves garlic (chopped)
• 1 zucchini
• 10-15 mushrooms
• 5 large tomatoes
• 2/3 cup of Borlotti beans
• 1/3 cup olives
• fresh basil
• salt and black pepper
• parmigiano-reggiano (or pecorino if you prefer that)

Directions
Prepare the linguine according to package directions, but set it aside one minute too early. Chop the onion, zucchini, mushrooms and tomatoes in large pieces. Chop the garlic and divide it into three small piles. Saute the onion and zucchini in a large frying pan with some olive oil and some of the garlic at high heat for a short while (around a minute), then pour it over to an empty plate. Without cleaning the pan add some more olive oil, some of the garlic and the mushrooms, saute for about a minute then pour it over to the plate with the zucchini. Add a little bit more olive oil to the pan, the rest of the garlic and the tomatoes. Saute for no more than a minute and then add Borlotti beans, olives, fresh basil, zucchini, mushrooms and the linguine. Stir it around. Add salt and pepper and let it all stir together for another minute. Serve immediately with some grated parmigiano.

This is a great recipe to make in the summer months as vegetables are at their best and it really enhances the overall flavor of this dish. Feel free to substitute or add in vegetables that are more to your liking or availability although the balance of vegetables in this recipe works really well.

If you haven’t already, we encourage you to visit Meatless Monday and join us in taking the pledge today. Spread the word at home and at work to promote CSR business initiatives and make your green call centre, office, factory, shop or salon even greener.

Buon appetito a tutti!