Good Quick and Healthy Supper Idea

Tonight was an iron chef kind of night in our household. Meaning we have barely any food, I'm feeling kind of lethargic from the heat and not up to packing the kids in the car to go to the store, and it is therefore up to me to make do with what we have. It has been a rough day already; when I walked in on Lily this morning her entire mattress was covered with vomit and she was sitting at one end looking at me with a hapless expression. Her diaper was filled beyond capacity. Needless to say we cleared our schedule today.

Anyway, so dinner rolls around and I'm totally not feeling like cooking, but I am home and they are content at the moment, and I feel like I should actually make something instead of dumping canned veggies, fruits and cheese in front of them. So I look around and find some pasta, spinach and cannelini beans, and I have an idea. Here is an approximation of what I did, in case you want to try it:

Whole Wheat Rotini with Cannelini Beans and Spinach


1/2 pound of whole wheat pasta (I used Hodgson Mills Veggie Whole Wheat Rotini)
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 package of bagged baby spinach, finely chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
1-2 tsp minced prepared garlic (the stuff you get in a jar)
1 can cannelini beans
salt to taste
olive oil or butter
grated cheese such as parmesan or Asiago


Cook the pasta according to directions. In a large saucepan or skillet,
heat the oil and then add the onion, garlic and about 1/4 tsp salt. Saute until onion is translucent, 3-5 minutes. Add the spinach and beans and cook until spinach is wilted and beans are warmed through. When pasta is done, drain and add to the bean mixture, stirring until well combined. Taste and correct seasoning to taste. Add butter or olive oil to taste and serve with cheese sprinkled on top.


I added olive oil to mine and butter and cheese to the kids'. I figured if I can get them to eat whole grains, leafy greens and protein in one sitting, it was worth the saturated fat. The verdict? Harry, who usually dawdles and pokes at his food, declared "I like it" after a few bites, wolfed the whole thing down and begged for seconds. Lily, not the pickiest eater but under the weather after all, liked it as well.

Right now they are going nuts chasing each other around the living room and kitchen. I should probably go supervise.

Until later -