Spinach Artichoke Wonderpot

Christmas down, New Years to go! Today I have a great, no-brainer recipe for you to try. Its not spectacular or super special but its tasty, unique, and oh-so-easy. So I guess you could say it's perfect for this lull in the next few days. And who doesn't love spinach artichoke anything?

How was your Christmas? Ours was full! We started opening presents at 7am, and was making our annual Christmas breakfast by 9am. We have the same thing every year - Mimosas, Eggs Benedict except with Welsh rarebit sauce (beer cheese sauce) instead of Hollandaise with tomato slices, orange rolls, cinnamon rolls, and a big bowl of fruit salad. This year we added in some apple cinnamon sausage compliments of my husband. Family and friends lingered and a mix of Christmas music and The Hunger Games played in the background. Not the most traditional Christmas movie ever, but you know, c'est la vie.

By 4pm we were at Mambos, our restaurant, for a Christmas dinner. Lobster Fra Diavolo for me and prosciutto wrapped tenderloin for Jeremy. Cannoli and chocolate hazelnut panna cotta for dessert. Not bad at all. Kids opted for regular bow tie pasta with meatballs. My sister, brother-in-law, and niece joined us this year and between us, ridiculous things were said.



Right before we left the restaurant Kaylee, my sister, let out a defeated Oh-no... I look...like... a... whore. It was shocking because my sister doesn't usually use words like "whore" and also because of the sincerity and seriousness in which she said it. Turns out she had a run in her stocking. I laughed, then took a picture.

And that's not all. Other ridiculous things were said. Things like I think I might train for a half marathon and do you want to join me? To be clear, that came out of my sisters mouth. I said A HALF MARATHON? Crazy. Why not start with a 5K? I mean, we don't even run...like at all. Then the real ridiculousness started when I responded with I would train for a 5K with you...

Don't laugh. I realize a 5K is only 3 miles, but I have never run a mile before. I jogged two miles really, really, s-l-o-w-l-y two years ago. I probably could have speed walked faster than I jogged. But that's about all the experience I have going for me. I listened to Mumford and Sons "I Will Wait" and Katy Perry's "Firework", and "You Ain't Never Had A Friend Like Me" from Aladdin while I did it. I remember. I was on the bike path by the river way down where it starts on the west end of town. It was cold, but not quite enough to deter me. 

End random memories.

Christmas night was spent reliving our childhoods while my two oldest kids played Super Mario Bros  for the first time on the Wii they got for Christmas. Up until now I have banned video game playing from my house. I hate it. But I used to play Mario Bros and was feeling nostalgic and I knew the kids would flip so I said yes. That music came right back to me. My sister and Pat were throwing out names I had long forgotten like Bowzers castle and Princess Peach and Yoshi. I forgot that a flag pole signaled the end of the level and Mario would slide down in victory. Pat looked up some video online of a kid playing elaborate piano to all the Mario theme songs. It was awesome.

Uncle Pat showing the kids how it's played


I caught this one morning around 5:45am. My son was just beholding the tree, sitting still and waking up. It's my favorite.


End Christmas re-cap.

So back to this wonderpot. The genius of the wonderpot recipes is that the pasta and all ingredients are cooked together for a specified amount of time and when it's done the remaining liquid, thickened by the starch in the noodles, becomes the sauce itself. Just stir and eat. Fun, right? The only thing to be wary of is cooking too long. You must eat this when it's ready. If allowed to sit, the liquid will keep absorbing into the noodles and become overcooked and thick. Make sure you season to taste with salt as well. This dish needs a hefty dose to make all the flavors shine through. I may even add a dusting of Parmesan to the top of my bowl next time.

Happy New Year, friends!



Spinach Artichoke Wonderpot
adapted from budgetbytes
serves 4-6

8 oz. mushrooms
1 (14 oz.) can artichoke hearts
5 cloves garlic
1 medium yellow onion
5 cups vegetable broth
2 Tbsp olive oil
12 oz. fettuccine (I used whole wheat)
1 tsp dried oregano
½ tsp dried thyme
freshly cracked pepper
4 oz. frozen cut spinach
Parmesan for topping
kosher salt

*I adapted this recipe to make a whole box of pasta, serving 6. I used 1 lb fettuccine and 6 1/2 cups of vegetable broth and added some extra salt, oregano, thyme and artichoke hearts but kept everything else the same. It turned out well.

Rinse the mushrooms to remove any dirt or debris. Slice the mushrooms thinly. Drain the can of artichoke hearts and roughly chop them into bite­ sized pieces. Thinly slice the onion and garlic (you can mince the garlic if you don't want large slices). Place the vegetable broth, olive oil, mushrooms, artichoke hearts, onions, and garlic in a large pot. Break the fettuccine in half and add it to the pot along with the oregano, thyme, a few hearty pinches of salt and some freshly cracked pepper. Push the ingredients down under the broth as much as possible. Place a lid on the pot and bring it up to a rolling boil over high heat.

As soon as it reaches a boil, stir the pot to evenly distribute the ingredients and prevent the pasta from
sticking. Turn the heat down to low so that the pot is just simmering. Allow the pot to simmer, with the lid on, for 10­-15 minutes, or until the pasta is tender and most of the liquid has been absorbed. Give the pot a stir every few minutes to prevent the pasta from sticking.

Once the pasta is cooked through, add the frozen spinach. Allow the heat from the pasta to thaw the
spinach. Stir the pot to help break up the clumps of spinach as they melt. Taste for seasonings. You'll probably need salt to prevent a bland finish. Serve hot with some grated parmesan on top.