Penne with Roasted Tomatoes, Garlic, and White Beans

I love me some Ellie Krieger. She's not only gorgeous and can cook, but she's also intelligent. She has a show on Food Network called Healthy Appetite, and it's absolutely the bees knees. She cooks healthy, flavorful food which will make you wonder why in the hell you used so much salt and butter in cooking. I have both of her cookbooks, and have cooked many excellent dishes from them. This one in particular is a favorite in our home. It's quick, frugal and flavorful. This season is the perfect time for this dish, so give it a try.


Here's the recipe from the website: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ellie-krieger/penne-with-roasted-tomatoes-garlic-and-white-beans-recipe/index.html

I made a few changes, but do whatever you want. I've added chicken also in the past, but this dish is really filling and yummy on its own. You can also add some red chiles for a bit of a kick. My kids don't do spicy, so I just add a lil red pepper flakes for a lil spicy kick.


Cook Time:50 min
Yield: 4 (1 1/2 cup) servings

Ingredients
3 large tomatoes, cut into wedges
4 cloves garlic, unpeeled
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons of lemon juice
1(15 ounce) can cannellini beans
1/2 pound penne pasta
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, torn
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan
Directions
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Slice each tomato into 8 wedges and discard the seeds. Put the tomato wedges and garlic into a 9 by 13-inch roasting pan. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and sprinkle with salt and a few turns of pepper. Roast in the oven, uncovered, for 40 minutes.

Drain the beans into a large colander in the sink. Cook the pasta according to the directions on the package. Drain the pasta into the colander containing the beans, so the hot pasta water will warm the beans. Return drained pasta and beans to the pasta pot.

When the tomatoes are done, pick out the garlic cloves, squeeze the garlic out of the skin into a small bowl and mash with a fork, add 1 tablespoon on oil, 2 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice, salt and pepper Pour the roasted tomatoes into the pasta pot, add the garlic mixture, the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil, the basil and additional salt and pepper, to taste. Toss to combine. Serve topped with the Parmesan.