Name: Creamy Garlic and Vegetable Pasta
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min
Ingredients: 2 cups pasta; (I used farfalle); 3 cloves garlic; 1 cup broccoli florets; ½ cup zucchini; (chopped); 1 cup mushrooms; (chopped); 3 tablespoons butter; 1 tablespoon all purpose flour; 2 tablespoons cream cheese; 1 ½ cup milk; (I used 1% milk )

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Creamy garlic and vegetable pasta...dreamy, garlicky, buttery goodness with a pasta. Yum. Okay, just to clarify, not all of my recipes are what you'd call "healthy". But to me, "healthy" isn't always only vegetables and fruits. It's all about eating well-balanced meals, listening to my body when it's full, and indulging within my own limits. So speaking of a creamy dreamy pasta...we all have pasta in our pantry right?! If you don't, I'm not sure how you survive. Especially during a pandemic...isn't everyone eating pasta right now??

For some reason during this pregnancy, pasta and I just have not been on good terms. Kinda like how I was with soy sauce at the beginning of my pregnancy...I talk about it in this post. Weird, right? But this Creamy Garlic and Vegetable Pasta is one pasta I will indulge in. So good.

So let's get to it...what does this pasta have that makes it so delicious??

Pasta - I used farfalle pasta but any kind will work!
Garlic...duh, it's in the title 🙂 .
Milk and cream cheese to make it creamy, dreamy.
Butter and flour to add some thickness.
Vegetables - I used broccoli, zucchini, and mushrooms. Don't have these vegetables? Get creative! Use what you have in your fridge!

Here's what you need to know about how I make the pasta:

Cook your pasta according to the instructions on the package.
Cook the vegetables and garlic in butter in a large skillet.
Lower the heat and move the vegetables over to the side of the skillet. On the empty side of the skillet, add the butter and flour and combine with a whisk and starts to turn a light brown. This flour and butter combo really adds the creamy thickness to the sauce.
SLOWLY, add the milk to the butter and flour combo and keep whisking until no lumps are visible with the liquid. Let the liquid thicken.
Add the cream cheese for more creaminess and combine until no lumps are visible.
Season with salt, pepper then add some cheese, basil, and whatever else your heart desires 🙂

I love pairing this with a salad, some bread, and seasoned olive oil on the side. If you're making this for a gathering, I'd suggest serving my Mushroom and Caramelized Onion Tart to go with the meal!

Don't forget to check out some other dinner ideas:

I hope you enjoy this dish and leave some love in the comments below if you tried it!

Let's talk dark green vegetables! According to MyPlate, most adults are recommended to eat 1.5 to 2 cups of dark green vegetables weekly. Dark green vegetables include bok choy, broccoli (like we used in our recipe today), collard greens, dark green leafy lettuce (and some other types of lettuce), kale, mustard greens, spinach, turnip greens, and so much more! Dark green vegetables are a great source of potassium, magnesium, vitamins A and C, folate, fiber, potassium, magnesium, and calcium. Don't forget to include them in your next dish 🙂 !

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5 from 2 votes