Some Meals We’ve Loved Recently + How To Make Pasta Salad Healthy (Including Recipes)

And Diana gives us her opinion on vegan mayo

Happy Monday! As this newsletter is all about getting creative with food, today we want to share some of our recent favorite meals - hopefully they help to spark ideas and allow you to have some fun cooking this month! We’re also giving you the rundown on pasta salads, with tips for getting the most nutrition out of this delicious side dish, as well as cooking suggestions for wheat pasta alternatives. Finally, Diana gives us her opinion on vegan mayo - check it out below.

Enjoy!

We want to know: What meals have you been loving lately? Share in the comments!

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Meals We Have Loved Recently

Dr. Weil:

This time of year, I love cooking whatever vegetables I’ve found at the farmer’s market or picked fresh from my garden. We’ve been able to source some great corn lately, which I’ve been loving. My favorite summertime meals tend to be simple - often a stir-fried vegetable that I’ve just harvested, with olive oil, salt, and pepper. I have a salad most nights and then will add another side dish, sometimes fish, sometimes tofu, or a whole grain.

Some meals I’ve been loving lately:

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Pasta Aglio Olio. Cook your favorite pasta al dente. Drain, saving about 1/4 cup of cooking water. Heat olive oil (about 1/4 cup for a pound of pasta). Add a lot of mashed garlic and stir-fry just until the garlic begins to color. Add some salt, red pepper flakes, and a small handful of chopped parsley. Cook just until the parsley wilts and turns bright green. Remove from heat, add pasta cooking water, and mix with pasta. Adjust seasoning if necessary. Serve with freshly grated Parmesan cheese if desired.

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Stir-Fried Veggies with Tofu. Great for using up garden veggies this time of year. Use whatever vegetables you have on hand.

Have veggies prepped to cook (onions, celery, bell pepper, broccoli, cabbage, mushrooms, etc.) Drain tofu, slice, and press between towels to remove excess water. Fry tofu slices in hot avocado oil until golden on both sides. Remove, drain on paper towels, and cut into bite-sized pieces. Add a little more oil to the pan along with some toasted sesame oil. Stir-fry veggies until crunchy-tender, adding some mashed garlic and grated fresh ginger, along with splashes of water to keep from burning or sticking. Add tofu. Flavor with soy sauce and mirin (or use dry sherry and some sugar in place of mirin). Serve with rice or noodles.

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Diana:

My energy for cooking lately has been low, so I’ve been relying on easy meals and favorites that I make often.

Some recent favorites:

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Mozzarella, Tomato, Basil Sandwiches. These are a summer-time staple! If I have time, I make fresh bread (or buy a fresh loaf of sourdough from the store), then top it with olive oil, salt, and pepper, sliced tomatoes (straight from the garden), basil, and balsamic glaze. I always make this with a salad (lately a big Greek salad), and then either grilled corn, steamed green beans, or asparagus. Easy, delicious, and colorful!

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Cold Noodles with Tomatoes. This was a recipe from the New York Times cooking app that my dad turned me on to recently that I LOVED. I wasn’t terribly excited to make it just based on the name, but trust me… it’s a perfect summer meal, especially if you have a lot of grape tomatoes. You make a broth from rice vinegar, sesame oil, soy sauce, a bit of sugar, garlic, and mustard. Then cook thin wheat noodles and rinse them in cold water. Combine broth, noodles, halved cherry tomatoes, thinly sliced radishes, and scallions in a bowl and devour with glee.

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Baked Feta Pasta. This was a viral recipe a few months back, and for good reason. It’s become a staple for us! Plus, it’s another good one to make in the summer months when cherry tomatoes are abundant. Add an 8-oz block of feta, two pints of cherry tomatoes, two thinly sliced shallots, and five cloves of mashed garlic to a sheet pan. Drizzle the vegetables with olive oil, then give the feta a good drizzle of olive oil. Add salt and pepper. Roast at 400°F for 40-45 minutes until tomatoes have burst and feta is golden. Meanwhile, make your pasta. When everything is done, top pasta with the roasted vegetables and a chunk of feta.

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Simple Tips for Delicious, Healthy Pasta Salads

Pasta salads are a traditional side dish for a reason: they can be cost-effective, filling, and extremely versatile! While we love pasta salads, some of the traditional versions aren’t so healthy. The good news is that if you think of pasta (or whole grains) as a base for building a nutrient-dense, anti-inflammatory dish, the possibilities are practically endless.

Learn more about how to make simple swaps to turn your regular pasta salad into a healthy, nutritious, anti-inflammatory meal! And before we get started, we want to share a free pasta salad recipe - one of three we are offering up in this newsletter!

7 Ways To Increase the Nutritional Value of Pasta Salad

You’ll still feel satisfied, just with more antioxidants, fiber, and protein! Try the following: