Garden-Special Primavera

Who doesn't love a good meal with a ton of veggies during the summer? One of my favorite summer activities is to go to the farmer's market on the weekends. I've only been once this summer due to my schedule, but I was able to pick up some fresh beans, zucchini and garlic before the rain started really coming down last Saturday. I impulsively picked up the new Mixing Bowl magazine that Better Homes & Gardens has created and started marking a ton of recipes that I wanted to make. I think I marked more recipes in this magazine than any other that I have gotten - which is quite a feat! So with the combination of these 2 things, I bring you - Garden-Special Primavera! I'm including the original recipe (a little bit adapted), but I did cut the recipe in half and had enough for 3 servings.

Garden-Special Primavera
Adapted from Mixing Bowl Magazine by member Debra


Ingredients:
2 cups fresh green beans, cut into 2-inch pieces
1/2 cup sliced carrots
1.5 cups fresh asparagus, trimmed & cut into 2-inch pieces (Omitted since the asparagus didn't look that great - I'm assuming since the season is almost over!)
1 cup broccoli flowerets
12 ounces fettuccine, linguine, vermicelli or spaghetti
1 small red pepper, cut into julienne strips
1 small zucchini, halved lengthwise & sliced
1 small onion, cut into thin wedges
2 gloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons butter
3/4 cup chicken broth
3/4 cup whipping cream
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup finely shredded Parmesan cheese
1/3 cup prosciutto or cooked ham (I actually just sliced up some deli meat ham and it worked great)
2 green onions, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons fresh or dried basil

Directions:
In a large saucepan, cook beans and carrots in a small amount of boiling salted water for 10 minutes. Add asparagus and broccoli. Return to boiling; reduce heat. cover and cook 5 minutes more or till vegetables are crisp-tender. Drain.

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, cook pasta according to package directions. Add sweet pepper and zucchini to pasta in boiling water for the last 3 minutes of cooking. Vegetables should be crisp-tender. Drain and return mixture to the saucepan. Add the bean mixture to the saucepan and keep it warm while preparing the sauce.

For sauce: In a medium saucepan, cook onion and garlic in hot butter over medium heat for 5 to 8 minutes or until tender but not brown. Stir in chicken broth. Bring to boiling; reduce heat.

In a small bowl, stir together whipping cream and flour. Add cream mixture to saucepan. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Stir in the 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, cooked ham, green onion and basil. Cook and stire for 1 minute more. Pour sauce over pasta and vegetables. Toss gently to coat.

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