Thursday, July 24, 2008

Frugal Fridays - a day early...

I'm early for this week's installment of Frugal Fridays, because we're leaving tomorrow afternoon to spend the weekend at a family reunion. Yippee!


I made this Garden Saute with Pasta last night for dinner, using a zucchini and a yellow squash from Mom's garden. I absolutely loved how simple, delicious, and easy it was. But I had accidentally left my camera at Mom's house (again!) and wasn't able to take pictures. I was all set and ready to give up on this recipe, which I made up on my own as I was cooking it last night.

But then I went to do laundry at Mom's house today, and there were some more zucchini and squash in the fridge. After some quick thinking, I decided that I had enjoyed this enough to make it again, and this time I had my camera! So here it is: my delicious, simple, and totally cheap recipe of Garden Saute with Pasta.


Garden Saute with Pasta
1 to 2 medium zucchini
1 to 2 medium yellow summer squash
2 tsp. bottled minced garlic
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
Salt and pepper
8 oz. cooked spaghetti or angel hair pasta

Chop zucchini and squash into bite-sized chunks. Heat about a teaspoon or so of oil in a large skillet. Saute veggie chunks and garlic until veggies are tender-crisp. Partially drain can of tomatoes and add to squash, along with Italian seasoning, and s&p to taste. Simmer until liquid from tomatoes reduces down. Serve over pasta.

That's how I made it last night. When I made this again today, Mom didn't have any canned tomatoes. So instead we added 3 chopped fresh tomatoes with the squash. When the squash were tender, we added about 1/2 cup tomato juice and the seasonings. Again, simmer until liquid reduces. It was delicious either way.

Price of ingredients:
8 oz. spaghetti - $0.80
Can of tomatoes - $1.39

Everything else was either spice cupboard basics or free garden produce.

Total Price: $2.19

Serve with a green salad for a healthy, delicious, inexpensive side dish.

I didn't calculate how many calories this is, but if you stick with a moderate amount of pasta, I'm sure this definitely qualifies as a low-calorie dish.

1 comment:

Tina Butler said...

That looks really good and all my favorite vegetables. Great job.