Simple dishes that last

This post is a two-for to make up for the blog post I didn't do on Sunday. 

Sunday I made...wait for it...beans and rice. 

Pigeon peas and sofrito sauce with brown rice, to be exact.  There wasn't a whole lot to blog about there.  I basically followed the pigeon pea soup recipe from over the summer except that I skipped the butternut squash and plantain and used frozen diced green peppers because that's what I had.  I think I also forgot to use the same amount of Yucateco because it wasn't as spicy as I expected.  Truth be told, this was good except that I wish I'd stirred in some tomato paste once the pigeon peas and sofrito sauce were combined.  It would have added some additional color and flavor variety that was lacking from this dish without the butternut squash from the soup.  Oh, and don't leave the peas soaking in the fridge for a day in a half unless you don't mind them sprouting a teeny bit.

Tonight I'm fueling up for another 13-miler, so I made spinach and artichoke pasta.  This used up the last of a bag of fresh spinach, some leftover canned artichokes and a lemon.  And the last of a small block of Romano cheese.  Mmm...pasta.

8 oz. whole wheat linguine
2 tbsp Earth Balance
2 oz. fresh baby spinach
1/2 can of artichoke hearts, drained
juice of one lemon
1/4 cup freshly grated Romano cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Cook the pasta according to the package directions.  Drain the pasta, lower the heat to medium and stir in the Earth Balance.  As soon as it melts, stir in the spinach and artichoke hearts and cook until the spinach wilts, tossing the ingredients well in order to blend them.  Stir in cheese and add salt and pepper to taste.

Both dishes this week yielded ample leftovers, and since I haven't been hungry for more than a salad most evenings, the leftovers are all getting eaten for lunch.  And since I'm running long first thing tomorrow morning, I'm sure I'll be loving the ready-and-waiting pasta leftovers when lunchtime rolls around!