TONIGHT'S DINNER AND THE WHITE BEAN SALAD REVIEW

My son and I had a busy day together today.  We spent most of the day running errands and grocery shopping so I was happy when he suggested something simple for dinner tonight.  He chose Pesto Pasta!

While I got the pasta on to cook, I brought out the White Bean Salad for an appetizer.  Instead of eating it as a salad with grilled chicken like I had planned, I served it as a dip with some Wheat Thins Tuscan Herb Flatbread Crackers that I had in the pantry.  What a wonderful combination!  It was fresh and flavorful and perfect on top of a cracker.  It wasn't the cleanest option to eat it with the crackers....but it was very tasty.  I try to make better choices these days; but I guess I'm not completely converted yet. The dip itself was very fresh and healthy.  I must say that it was a hit with the family because there were no leftovers!

On to dinner preparations now.....

We usually make our own pesto sauce and I would prefer to do that because it tastes better and is minimally processed; however, I have very little basil this year.  It's been so hot and we've been traveling so I haven't cared for my herbs very well this year.  I am sorry to report that....but it's the truth. 

When we don't have fresh basil, the pesto sauce made by Classico  is a good substitute.  That is what we used tonight on top of rotini pasta.    As a family, we haven't developed a taste for whole wheat pasta yet even though we know it's better for us.   So as a compromise, I always use Ronzoni Smart Taste.  It tastes like regular pasta but is lower in fat and calories and has added fiber, calcium and Vitamin D.  I like to think I'm making a better choice than using regular pasta.   To kick the nutrition value up even more, after I mixed the pesto sauce with the hot drained pasta, I threw in several handfuls of baby spinach.  The spinach wilts nicely when stirred into the hot pasta and is such a yummy addition.  I added some leftover grilled chicken and freshly grated parmesan cheese and we had quite a meal.

Now, I'm from Louisiana so I like a whole lot of flavor.   On my portion, I added some crushed red pepper and sundried tomatoes.  To me, that just made it even better. 

What kind of food did you enjoy this evening?