Lea, again, knocked it out of the park with this dish. She has a knack for finding recipes that are simple, delicious, healthy, and always come out looking beautiful.  Tonight’s was no exception. On the menu? One dish – Grilled Veggie Spaghetti.

 

Ingredients:

• 2-3 garlic cloves
• EVOO – don’t measure, just pour what looks right (about 1/3 cup if you’re really not sure)
• 6 roma tomatoes, roughly chopped
• 1 large red onion, cut into 1-inch wedges
• Spaghetti (we used whole wheat)
• Parmesan cheese (grate it if you got it)
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped basil (Key ingredient to any dish when it’s used; don’t skip this step.  We used the homegrown variety!)

 

Equipment:

• Grill
• 13x9x2 disposable foil pan
• Grill tray for veggies comes in really handy

 

Start by preheating the grill.  We have a gas grill with three burners; I turned the front two on high and left the rear one off. I also got the water going for the spaghetti right away.

 

Mince your garlic cloves and add it to the foil pan with about 1/4 cup EVOO.  Set that pan aside.  Then toss your onion and tomatoes in a bowl and coat with some EVOO, salt and pepper.  At this point, place the foil pan with the minced garlic on the coolest part of the grill – it’s going to warm-up while the veggies are cooking.  Then place your onion and tomato mixture on the hottest part of the grill (again, I laid a veggie tray down first).  Turn the veggies occasionally for those beautiful grill marks.  The smokey flavor you get from this process is what sets this dish apart.  You’ll recognize the grill flavor while eating your spaghetti, which is a little unusual, but super gourmet.  Once the veggies look cooked, dump them into the foil pan and mix.

 

Meanwhile, have the spaghetti boiling, chop the basil and grate the parmesan.  Toss the drained pasta with about 1/4 cup of pasta water, parmesan, basil, contents of the foil pan, and salt and pepper to taste.  I added some red pepper flakes to my plate for a little kick.

 

In the glass?  The rest of our bottle of Campo Viejo Tempranillo from the night before.  Comes from the Rioja region of Spain, costs about 10 bucks, and is a Great everyday drinker.  Plus, it’s pretty easy to find.  You may recognize the label.

 

Tip: When you have a left-over bottle, make sure no air can get into it.  Air brings the flavor out of wine, which is great when you’re drinking it, but prematurely ages the wine when you’re not.  So give it as much air as you can when you let it roll over your palate (hence the swirling and aerating), but keep that stuff air-tight if you plan to finish it another day.

 

For dessert, a block of French dark chocolate. Thanks, Mom! Washing it down with my Rioja at this very moment.  This may become a blog posting ritual…