Pasta with Feta and Roasted Vegetables

You wouldn’t know it from the snow outside, but according to the calendar it’s Spring! I knew I wanted to make a pasta dish with Feta cheese and tomatoes and when I saw asparagus was on sale at my grocery store this week I thought it would be the perfect addition! This was light, filling and delicious and the basil and asparagus made it taste like Spring to me (as long as I don’t look out the window). I love Feta cheese and its saltiness paired nicely with the sweet roasted tomatoes. I ate this as a main dish but it could certainly work as a side dish in a smaller portion and would be great to bring to a picnic or barbecue. 

Originally I ate this warm as a hot pasta entree, but the next day I ate some chilled from the fridge as a pasta salad and both were absolutely delicious.  I think I might even like it as a cold pasta salad better. Take your pick!

Pasta with Feta and Roasted Vegetables

Source: Emily Bites Original

Ingredients:
1 c Grape Tomatoes
1 c Asparagus, snapped into 1” pieces
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 T Extra Virgin Olive Oil, divided
Salt, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
12 oz uncooked wheat penne
1/3 c fresh basil leaves, torn
4 oz Feta cheese, crumbled

Directions:
1.    Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2.    In a medium bowl, combine tomatoes, asparagus and garlic. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and salt & pepper to taste and toss to coat. Pour vegetables onto a baking sheet, making sure to drizzle all the oil from the bowl over the veggies and roast in the oven for 10-15 minutes.
3.    Cook pasta according to package directions in salted water. Drain.
4.    In a serving bowl, combine pasta with roasted vegetables and leftover juices/oil from the pan. Add remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil, basil leaves and Feta cheese and additional salt and pepper to taste if necessary. Stir to combine. Serve warm, chilled or at room temperature.

Yields 6 (1 ½ c) servings. Weight Watchers Points Plus:  9 per serving*
*If you choose to serve it as a side dish, you can get 12 (3/4 c) servings at 4 P+ each