One-Pot-Wonder Southwest Pasta

One-Pot-Wonder Southwest Pasta

Serves: 8 people
Prep Time: 8 minutes
Cooking Time: 17 minutes
One-Pot-Wonder Southwest Pasta

Ingredients

  • 1 (13.5 oz.) box of whole wheat rotini or any pasta
  • 2 cups frozen corn kernels
  • 1 medium green bell pepper, cut into thin strips
  • 1/2 medium red onion, sliced
  • 1 (15 oz.) can Rotel canned tomatoes and chilies, I used the Mexican blend with lime and cilantro
  • 1/4 cup taco seasoning, I used Old El Paso, medium
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 4 cups fat-free chicken or vegetable broth
  • 1 (15 oz.) can black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1/4 cup Mexican cheese blend, plus more for topping (Optional)

Instructions

Print This Recipe

The simplicity of this recipe is to die for. If you want something easy and delicious for the whole family, not to mention healthy, this is the dish for you. Amanda Finks (the woman behind the Wholesome Dish blog) is a trained and experienced professional in Food Science.

Nevertheless, she keeps it real with some classic recipes that, while they may not be the healthiest in everyone’s eyes, find themselves balanced by the bounty of healthy choices posted to the blog. Amanda encourages home-cooked food whenever possible, so she has made a resoundingly successful effort at providing quick meals that the whole family can enjoy. Hence one of her recipe categories, “easy” recipes.

There are also “best” recipes, which provide gold standards for classic dishes, and “healthy” recipes that offer alternatives to tempting indulgences. This is one of the quick recipes, but man is it good. It’s actually quite difficult to say very much about this dish. It is so straightforward. Pasta, corn, green bell pepper, seasoning, oil, and broth all go into the same pot. Bring the lovely bunch to a rolling boil, then reduce heat.

There should a bit of liquid in the bottom of the pot after all is said and done. Once the heat is off, go ahead with adding the black beans and Mexican cheese if it suits your fancy. The result is cheesy, flavorful pasta with a Latin kick. Amanda’s taste testers are her own family; let it be known that this recipe went over VERY well.

  1. Add all but the last 2 ingredients (beans and cheese) to a large pot. Stir, cover, and bring to a rolling boil.
  2. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, covered, for 12-15 minutes, stirring occasionally. There should be ¼ to ½ inch of liquid in the bottom of the pot when it is done.
  3. Remove from heat. Stir in the black beans and cheese (optional). Let it rest for 5 minutes to warm the beans, melt the cheese, and absorb the excess liquid.