What's for Dinner?

I just finished cooking dinner and since this is one of our favorite meals, I thought I'd share the recipe. The inspiration of this recipe came from a Runners World recipe called Asparagus and Mushroom Rigatoni. I remember cutting out the recipe and wondering when I was going to make it...especially since I was single. When Tim came to visit me in IL sometime, he saw the recipe and asked if we could try it...so we did. However, we both decided that it needed some protein. Then, the experimenting started. I usually just use whatever I have, but here's the recipe.

Ingredients:
Whole wheat pasta
1 lb of shrimp (shelled and deveined) or chicken cut into bite size chunks
1 bunch of asparagus, broken into bite sized pieces
1 lb of sliced mushrooms (any variety)
1 tomato
1 lemon or lime
3 zucchini sliced
3 cloves of garlic or 3 T. garlic powder
3 T. olive oil
1 T. basil or parsley (We prefer fresh basil.)
Salt and pepper
Parmesan cheese

Directions: Boil the pasta. While it's boiling, I prepare the veggies. In an electric skillet, heat the olive oil and add the garlic. Add the mushrooms, zucchini, and asparagus. Add salt and pepper to taste. While that is sauteeing, add 1 cup of the pasta water. Let it cook down and then add the drained pasta. If I'm using chicken, I add that before the veggies. When I use shrimp, I add it with the pasta. I let the meat finish cooking, then right before I'm ready to serve it, I add the juice from the lemon or lime, the basil, and the tomato. Then I cover it with parmesan cheese and put the lid on until the cheese melts. Once the cheese is melted, it's ready to serve.

Since the kids won't eat this, I only make it when they're not here. It makes enough for us to have another meal out of. Tim loves it and it's one of my favorites. Let me know if you try it and what you think!

Enjoy!