Meatless Noodle Bake

This dish looks fantastic when presented to the family and tastes great. I can't remember where the recipe came from but we have enjoyed it for 20 years or so. It is great as a meatless main or as a side to a good pan fried chop.

Ingredients

• 3/4 lb. spaghetti
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium carrot, finely chopped
• 1/2 lb. asparagus, cut into 1/2 inch lengths
• 1 medium red bell pepper (we used 5 small colorful sweet peppers)
• 4 green onions, cut into 1/2 inch lengths
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
• 3 large eggs
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1 cup parmesan cheese, grated

Supplies

• large baking dish
• large pot and colander for cooking pasta
• large mixing bowl, 4 cup measure, spatula, and whisk
• knife, cutting board, and measuring spoons

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
• Season water with salt until "salty as the sea".
• Add spaghetti and cook until 3/4 of the recommended cooking time, stir to prevent sticking. Mine took 7 1/2 minutes.
• Drain and set aside. Don't worry if it sticks to itself, it will unstick when you mix with remaining mixture.

If you are comfortable you can move on to the next step and prep your veggies while the pasta is cooking.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and adjust rack to center of oven.

• Chop asparagus into 1/2 inch lengths
• Finely chop carrot
• Stem, seed, and finely chop peppers
• Chop green onion in 1/2 inch lengths
• Mince garlic (sorry I forgot the pics)

Place this mixture into your mixing bowl.

• Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium high heat.
• Add vegetables, season with salt, and cook 5 minutes until fork tender.
• Remove from heat and season with pepper.
• Place softened vegetables in large mixing bowl and set aside.

This large bowl will be a staging area and used to mix all ingredients before going in the baking dish.

• Place heavy cream, eggs, and cheese into 4 cup measure and combine.
• Place noodles and cream mixture into bowl with veggies.
• Combine all ingredients and pour into an ungreased baking dish.

It will be necessary to rearrange your mixture to ensure the noodles are evenly spread to the corners of your dish and veggies are distributed to your liking.

• Bake for about 40 minutes at 350 degrees F until top is slightly brown and springs back when pressed.
• Inserting a knife into the center should come out clean and free of any liquid egg or cream.
• Let stand for 10 minutes. This may require a degree of willpower.
• Cut into squares with a sharp knife and plate as desired.

This dish should be served with your favorite spicy condiment. I hope this dish brings your family together around food like it has ours.