Healthy "Hostel" Pasta with spice-rubbed toasted pitas

Healthy "Hostel" Pasta

Hello friends, well today is my birthday- and a good day to affirm my commitment to healthy eating.  And while I'm sure the menus celebrating my birthday and my husband's law school graduation this weekend will include a lot of meat and diary, our weekday commitment to veganism will keep us clean for most meals.

In high school, I traveled with a friend and her family to Banff, Canada and there or somewhere near there, we had a meal at a youth hostel I've never forgotten.  Myself a "youth", the hippie atmosphere and the granola menu were totally new to me and totally cool- it was the nineties after all.  I ordered a marinara pasta full of vegetables that inspired this latest dish.

Healthy "Hostel" Pasta with toasted pitas
Serves 4

Ingredients for the pasta:
3 cups dry penne pasta
4 cups broccoli florets
16 oz baby spinach
1 large Spanish onion sliced
4 tbsp nutritional yeast
1 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Ingredients for the sauce:
1 15 oz can crushed tomatoes
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp chopped fresh basil or 1 tsp dried basil
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper

Ingredients for the toasted pita:
2 whole grain pita loaves cut into triangles
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp garlic salt
1 tbsp crushed red pepper
1 tbsp dry basil

Directions:  Cook the penne according to package directions.  Meanwhile, saute the sliced onions in 1 tbsp olive oil in a dutch oven or wide, shallow sauce pan.  Once softened, add the garlic and saute for 30 seconds before adding all other ingredients for the sauce. Cook over medium heat until simmering.  Add the broccoli and spinach and cook, stirring occasionally until the broccoli is firm-tender and the spinach is wilted.  Turn the heat to low and add the nutritional yeast, stirring until it dissolves (the nutritional yeast adds a umami flavor to the pasta similar to what you get from Parmesan cheese)  When the pasta is close to being ready, brush the pita triangles with olive oil, combine the basil, crushed red pepper and garlic salt and sprinkle the pitas before toasting on 350 degrees for 5-7 minutes.  Toss the penne with the sauce, sprinkle with salt & pepper to taste and serve family style-you'll make the Banff hippie hostel proud :)

spice-rubbed toasted pitas