There is something about the summertime that just naturally makes me crave lighter food. I am always reaching for fruit for snacks, and dinners tend to be much lighter as well. I could easily have a salad for dinner every night, but since I can’t quite get away with that (husbands) I still try to make more “summery” dinners when the temperatures peak.
I can’t be alone in this, right? It seems only natural to go for lots of fruits, veggies, and lighter foods when its hot and then crave the denser, heavier meals come winter time. It’s just evolution!
Anyway, pretty much every single week when I’m thinking about our weekly meal plan, I tell myself I’d really like to try to implement a “Meatless Monday” dinner into our menu. And just about every week I fail because I…well, becasue I like cooking with and eating meat! Plus, I really do feel like I need a lot of protein to keep myself fueled for a physical job and daily workouts.
But still, I am up for a challenge to try to make myself create something delicious and filling using different ingredients.
Well, I finally succeeded last week and I am so glad I did it! This Simple Summer Pasta is so dang delicious, and SO adaptable for any dietary need/preference!
You can EASILY make this meal vegan, vegetarian, paleo, gluten free, grain free, primal, or any combination on the list. And I promise, every version will be satisfying and delicious!
The magic is in the tomato/artichoke/pesto “sauce” that comes together in less than 15 minutes, and then you can serve that over zucchini noodles, brown rice pasta, regular ol’ pasta, spaghetti squash, or any other vegetable/starch you can think of.
It was super easy to add meat for Travis- I just browned up some pre-cooked organic chicken sausages from Trader Joes and added them to the top of his bowl. He also went for a healthy serving of brown rice pasta in addition to the zoodles. What can I say, he’s a growing boy! 
I also think this would be great with grilled chicken or shrimp. Seriously, the options are pretty much endless.
In addition to the meal being super flexible in terms of who you can feed with it, it’s also super simple to create, which is a must when the kitchen is hot! Thanks to premade (vegan) pesto and marinated artichokes in a jar, it requires very little prep or chopping but is still FULL of flavor! 
All in all, this is one of those dinners that you can whip up any night of the week for anyone, requiring not many ingredients and in no time flat! My only regret was not making more sauce because I could have enjoyed the leftovers for days!
Ingredients 
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes
- 1 red onion
- 12 oz marinated, quartered artichokes
- 4 cloves garlic
- 3 Tbsp pesto
- 2 Tbsp butter or cooking oil of choice
- 2 Tbsp broth (chicken or vegetable)
- salt & pepper
For serving:
- Zucchini noodles (1 zucchini per person), or 8 oz brown rice pasta
- Parmesan (optional)
- Chicken sausages (optional)
Instructions
- Chop the onion and mince the garlic. Drain the artichoke hearts and set aside.
- Heat a large skillet with butter or oil. Add onion, garlic, artichokes, and tomatoes to the pan and saute about 8-10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, prepare the pasta you will be using. If using zucchini, make your zoodles (I estimate 1 zucchini per person served). If using brown rice pasta, boil water and cook according to package instructions. You could also use spaghetti squash when it is in season.
I used an awesome tool similar to this one to make thinner “angel hair” type zoodles. 
- Add broth to the pan and let simmer for another 5 minutes, until all of the tomatoes have “popped”. Add salt and pepper to taste (about 1/2 tsp each)
- Finally, add the pesto and mix it in well!
- Serve the delicious tomato/artichoke/pesto sauce over zoodles or pasta! Grate parmesean cheese on top if desired. For more protein, add cooked chicken sausages, shrimp, grilled chicken, etc.
This bowl of good-for-you food was seriosuly mouth-watering delicous! No matter how you decide to serve it, I can promise it will please any crowd!
Tomatoes, artichokes, and pesto served over zucchini noodles, creating the most delicious summer evening dinner!
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes
- 1 red onion
- 12 oz marinated quartered artichokes
- 4 cloves garlic
- 3 Tbsp pesto
- 2 Tbsp butter or cooking oil of choice
- 2 Tbsp broth chicken or vegetable
- salt & pepper
- Zucchini noodles 1 zucchini per person
- or 8 oz brown rice pasta
- Parmesan cheese optional
- Chicken sausages optional
-
Chop the onion and mince the garlic. Drain the artichoke hearts and set aside.
-
Heat a large skillet with butter or oil. Add onion, garlic, artichokes, and tomatoes to the pan and saute about 8-10 minutes.
-
Meanwhile, prepare the pasta you will be using. If using zucchini, make your zoodles (I estimate 1 zucchini per person served, so you will need 4 medium sized). If using brown rice pasta, boil water and cook according to package instructions. You could also use spaghetti squash when it is in season.
-
Add broth to the pan and let simmer for another 5 minutes, until all of the tomatoes have "popped". Add salt and pepper to taste (about 1/4 tsp each)
-
Finally, add the pesto and mix it in well!
-
Serve the delicious tomato/artichoke/pesto sauce over pasta! For more protein, add cooked chicken sausages.
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