Catfish Out of Water

Being in the restaurant industry, the holidays are always incredibly busy. No one wants to cook when they're about to cook for the whole family! So, I've been in quick and easy dish mode lately. My idea of a "simple" meal is anything that takes less than a half hour to toss together. So, boxed pasta definitely fits the bill! And, as much as I sometimes just grate some parmesan over it and toss in salt and pepper? It's sometimes fun to just sautée up some fruits and vegetables while the water boils. Hence the pasta with sweet potatoes, garlic, ginger, tahini, tamari, rice vinegar, walnuts, and havarti cheese today.

Despite what having a food blog might suggest, I'm a big fan of simple meals. Don't get me wrong, I'll go out of my way to make an over-the-top dish. But I still enjoy the simple things that you can just toss together and go. Boxed pasta is definitely an opportunity to make something in 15 minutes that's going to look fancier than it really is. It's also a great recipe to mix and match your own favorite produce. I just tossed everything lying around, which just so happened to be sweet potatoes, garlic, ginger, havarti, and walnuts. Although you can absolutely curate the flavor profile to your own personal taste.

Gallery

Variations of Sweet Potatoes Pasta

There are plenty of other ways to make pasta with roasted vegetables and/or cheeses. I tend to think of spaghetti too much as just a mechanism for eating cheese (which, don't get me wrong, is absolutely delicious. And probably one of my favorite things to make!) Although there are plenty of other ways to make pasta. Including with raw or roasted fruits and vegetables.

Rigatoni w/ Gruyère & Emmentaler Cheese

Fusilli w/ Sweet Potato, Bell Pepper, Garlic, & Ginger

Fusilli w/ Alfredo, Broccoli, & Stilton Blue Cheese

Pasta w/ Sweet Potatoes, Ginger, & Walnuts

This sweet potato pasta consists of sweet potatoes, garlic, ginger, tahini, tamari, rice vinegar, havarti cheese, and crushed walnuts with spaghetti. I also added in a little nutmeg, cumin, coriander, and a dash of salt and pepper for an extra kick. Although you can use whatever fruits and vegetables that you have on hand the spices that go best with your personal flavor preferences.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 20 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine American, Asian, Italian

Servings 2 servings

Equipment

• Large Pot
• Cheese Grater
• Saucepan
• Stovetop

Ingredients

  

• 1/2 lbs. pasta (I used spaghetti, although any pasta of choice will do)
• 1/2 sweet potato diced
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 1 tsp. ginger minced
• 2 tbsp. tahini
• 1 tbsp. tamari (or soy sauce)
• 1 tbsp. rice vinegar
• dash nutmeg
• dash cumin
• dash coriander
• dash salt
• dash pepper
• 1/4 c. havarti
• handful walnuts crushed

Instructions

 

Cook Pasta

• Add about 4 inches of water to a large pot and bring to a boil over high heat.
• Cook pasta according to the manufacturer's instructions. This typically entails boiling for about 8-12 minutes, or until barely al dente.
• Remove the pasta from the water and set aside.

  You may want to stir it occasionally to keep the noodles from sticking together.

Sauté Produce

• Add all of the rest of the ingredients, except for the cheese and walnuts, to a skillet. Bring up to medium heat and sauté for 15 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes have softened.

Serve

• Combine the pasta and produce together and top with cheese and walnuts.
• Serve immediately.