Betsy Bailey

I love pasta, but I don’t usually have a lot of variations – most of my creations are some combination of noodles, ground beef, red sauce and cheese. Sometimes I’ll get crazy and alfredo it up. I’m a busy working mom. I love to cook, but I just don’t have enough time or energy to play in the kitchen. Besides, my family is picky and they don’t want to try new foods.

Isn’t that lame? Because, really, there is no excuse! Going (somewhat) vegetarian has forced me out of my comfort zone with food and I’m finding it’s incredibly fast and easy to discover new recipes. We’ve had a couple flops, but we’ve also had some interesting successes. I’ve been impressed by how my family has taken to this culinary adventure.

This week so far we’ve tried two new pasta dishes.

• Garlicky White Beans, Sage and Orecchiette

• Whole-Wheat Pasta with Broccolini and Feta

>> Read on for recipes and my impressions of these meals