Hannah is back with another food blogging contribution. I asked her to put together a family-friendly Sunday supper for Foodie.com; something that both kids and adults would enjoy. She said, “Adults and kids both like pasta, right?” And I nodded my head vigorously.

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Since we are now offically in spring, I wanted to create a Sunday Supper that was simple and fresh with lots of veggies. The meal had to be an easy sell to kids, so I made a roasted veggie bow tie pasta, strawberry and goat cheese salad, and a panna cotta with fresh berries. In each dish, you can make minor alterations (like leaving the walnuts out of the salad or just serving strawberries with goat cheese to the kids) but still make everyone basically the same meal.

Before we get into the recipes, take a look at my collection of 12 easy, family-friendly Sunday suppers.


PASTA:

Veggies to roast (I used cherry tomatoes and asparagus, but come summer, you can try corn, peppers, and summer squash)

Dark leafy greens to sauté

Pancetta or bacon (I used about 6 pieces of bacon, you can use 1/3-1/2 lb of pancetta if you’d prefer)

1 box of bow tie pasta

Grated parmesan for topping

Olive oil

Salt and pepper

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This is super simple but delicious and doesn’t even need a sauce. You can either roast veggies on a grill, or, if you’re in a NYC apartment and don’t have a grill, you can use your oven like I did.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Chop up all your veggies for roasting into bite sized pieces and line a baking sheet with tin foil. Toss the veggies with a little olive oil and salt and pepper, to taste.

Spread out the veggies on the baking sheet in an even layer and pop in the oven. Meanwhile, put the pancetta or bacon in a dutch oven over medium heat, covered, to cook. If you’re using pancetta it’s best to cut it up into pieces beforehand. If you’re cooking with bacon, cook the bacon before cutting/crumbling.

Chop up the leafy greens (I used kale but swiss chard is also super good with this). If you’re using bacon, wait until all bacon is cooked and reserve the grease and set bacon aside. Throw in the greens and sauté until soft and slightly wilted, then remove from heat and add in the bacon, crumbling by hand. If you’re using pancetta, just throw the greens in without removing the meat.

Set water to boil and cook your pasta until al dente.

The veggies should be almost done roasting by now, I don’t have a particular amount of time this takes as it depends on the veggie—I usually just keep an eye on it and when they start looking a little crispy I take them out. Add the roasted veggies and drained pasta to the greens/bacon mixture and toss.

Serve with a little freshly grated parmesan and that’s it! Yum!

SALAD:

arugula

strawberries

goat cheese

walnuts

dressing of choice (I like a raspberry vinaigrette)

No instructions needed. Just add ingredients, toss, and serve. Voila!

PANNA COTTA: (recipe from here)

– 1 1/2 cups whole milk

– 3 teaspoons powdered gelatin

– 1/3 cup sugar

– 1 1/2 cups light or heavy cream

– 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

– Pinch salt

– Fresh fruit

– Little Marie Antoinette glasses like I used, or ramekins.

1) Bloom the gelatin: Pour the milk into the saucepan and sprinkle the powdered gelatin evenly over top. Let soften for 5 minutes or until the surface of the milk is wrinkled and the gelatin grains look wet and slightly dissolved.

2) Dissolve the gelatin over low heat: Set the saucepan over low heat and warm the milk gently, stirring or whisking frequently. The milk should never boil or simmer; if you see steam remove the pot from the stove and let it cool down. The milk should get hot, but not so hot that you can’t leave your finger in the pot for a few seconds. The gelatin will dissolve quickly as the milk warms; it melts at body temperature so this step should go quickly.

3) Check to make sure the gelatin is dissolved: After about 2 minutes of warming, rub a bit of the milk between your fingers to make sure it’s smooth. Or dip a spoon in the milk and check the back for distinct grains of gelatin.

4) Dissolve the sugar: Stir the sugar into the milk and continue warming until it dissolves as well. It shouldn’t take more than 5 minutes total to dissolve both the gelatin and sugar. Again, never let the mixture boil.

5) Whisk in the cream and flavorings: Remove the saucepan from the heat. Whisk in the cream, vanilla, and a pinch of salt.

6) Pour into the ramekins/glasses and chill: Divide the mixture evenly between the prepared ramekins and put in the refrigerator to chill. Let chill for 1-2 hours. Top with fresh fruit and serve.

And there you have it! A super easy Sunday supper.

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