Dinner From The Garden: Gluten-Free Pasta and Corn Sauce

Gluten-Free Pasta and Corn Sauce

I made this with the last harvest from my garden this year. Traditionally, the recipe calls for one red and one green bell pepper, but what I had in my garden was an Ubatuba pepper which is red and a banana pepper which I picked green. Despite warnings of being super hot, I found the Ubatuba to be mild and a perfect substitution for the red bell. Also from the garden I picked fresh basil, which unfortunately is seasonal, and fresh oregano, which I have kept outside for years now without losing it. Finally, the last ingredient from the garden was elephant garlic. 

This was my first year growing it and I have to admit there will not be another year I don't grow garlic. 

Fresh garlic is so amazing. 

Moving on, I purchased an onion, oat milk (made by Pacific), extra virgin olive oil, bacon, corn, and corn pasta. All were easy to find at my local co-op and Trader Joe's. Starting with the the upper left square in the picture above, I chopped all the peppers, garlic, onions, and herbs before setting them aside. 

I cooked the corn and then cut it off the cob and set it aside. I measured out the pasta and put some water on to boil. At this point, if you really wanted, you could measure out the oil and oat milk but I usually eyeball it so you won't see it in the picture. 

Next, as you can see in the upper right of the picture above, I have heated a pan with olive oil and then added the chopped peppers, garlic, onions, and herbs. I stirred for a minute and then added the corn as shown in the bottom left of the picture. 

The last picture shows the oat milk being added and left on low to let the flavors blend. While that is happening, cook the pasta and a strip of bacon. When this is done, pour the sauce over the pasta and crumble bacon over the top. 

This was my favorite dish as a kid. My family had a tradition of choosing your meals for your birthday, and I always chose this for dinner. Of course back then I wasn't glucose and dairy-free, so it was shells with corn sauce and the recipe called for heavy whipping cream. Despite my modifications to create a healthier dish, I can't tell the difference! It's still one of my favorites, and I'm happy to share it with everyone.

For you chefs out there, here's the recipe!

12 oz. pasta of your choice cooked according to package instructions (shells are my favorite; Penne was what I could find on short notice)

4 strips of bacon, cooked and crumbled

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped

1 teaspoon fresh oregano, chopped

1 mild red pepper, chopped

1 mild green pepper, chopped

1 medium red onion, chopped

3 cloves of fresh garlic, minced (or one elephant clove if you can find it)

Salt and pepper to taste

12 oz. fresh corn cooked and cut from cob (about 6 ears)

1 cup oat milk (may add more or less for a thicker or thinner sauce)