Pasta Tonight!

If you like goat cheese, then read on. I made a really really good pasta tonight. And, of course, many of the ingredients could be changed given your particular preferences. The pasta I made tonight included what I had: fresh tomato and 1 lb roasted asparagus--but many other veggies would work just as well.

6 oz. whole wheat spiral pasta

1 lb roasted asparagus--I had roasted this the night before (20 min at 425 oven-tossed with olive oil, salt and pepper) Chop asparagus in one inch pieces
2 plum tomatoes chopped
bunch of fresh basil sliced thinly
6 oz goat cheese (fresh--not the already crumbled kind)
olive oil
1/2 lemon
lemon zest
black pepper

Put the water on to boil. Cook pasta according to pkg.

In a large pasta tossing bowl, put the chopped tomato, the asparagus, crumble goat cheese on top, sprinkle with pepper, drizzle with olive oil, squeeze a half lemon over this mixture and add some lemon zest and sprinkle on fresh basil. Toss all this business around a bit.

When ready to drain pasta, save out a cup of the pasta water. Drain pasta. Turn hot pasta into the bowl and toss with tomato/asparagus mixture. Add some of the pasta water to help make a sauce--the goat cheese will melt making a really nice pasta sauce--that is, if you like goat cheese. But if you don't like goat cheese--why are you reading this? Cause I already warned you in the first sentence.

Ok-this was really tasty!