A Simple Summer Pasta

Ah, July 4th weekend. Except I had to work. All weekend. Oh yes, and while I was at work last night, a patient tried to strangle me. Literally.

Occupational hazards aside, though, it was still a great weekend - even when I'm simultaneously saddened that Zach and I have to spend a weekend apart, I'm still always content to be at work, having chosen a career which, I fully accept, both

A. requires working on most holidays, and
B. as I'm sure you've already gathered from my first paragraph, is never boring.

(The patient, by the way, was completely not of her right mind when she lunged at me, and was thankfully not strong enough to be of any real danger, so no hard feelings or scars remain!)

I switch between night shifts and day shifts most weeks now (which is actually much easier than it sounds, surprisingly), and after nearly 2 whole months working night shifts (which equates to nearly 2 whole months working at my first job as a nurse - hooray!) I've developed my own quirky little routine - whenever I wake up in the afternoon before I drive to work on a night shift, I always sit up, look about, and say out loud, "Good Morning." If I am awakening on a weekday, when Zach is at the hospital on a clinical rotation, this means I am saying "Good Morning," very decisively, to the cats, but I continue with my routine nonetheless, as though a simple phrase could convince my slightly sleep-addled brain that plenty of normal people really do arise for work at 4PM in the afternoon.

When I first started night shifts, not only did I develop the above-mentioned dialectical routine, I also started cooking more meals ahead of time, trying to plan (against my predilections for spontaneity in the kitchen) my cooking for the days when I wasn't working, such that leftovers would always be available on the days when I was. While I'm still continuing to fine-tune my weekly menu planning skills, I've also discovered that on some days, when the urge to cook just ceases me unshakably, it's entirely more enjoyable to simply forgo an hour or so of sleep, and savor the joys of cooking in summer's bountiful kitchen...

Good morning... Supper's ready...

A Simple Summer Pasta

6 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb. ground turkey OR 1 lb. tempeh, crumbled
3 T olive oil
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 cup vegetable broth
3 large tomatoes, cut into 1/2" cubes
1 (14 oz) can artichoke hearts, drained and roughly chopped
1/8 cup thinly sliced fresh basil
6 0z whole wheat spaghetti, cooking according to package directions, with 1/2 cup of pasta cooking water reserved
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

~ In a large skillet over medium heat, saute the garlic and the ground turkey or tempeh in the olive oil until the turkey or tempeh is cooked through and browned.
~ Stir in the red pepper flakes, broth, tomatoes, and artichoke hearts, de-glazing the pan with the broth while you're stirring in the rest of the ingredients.
~ Reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer just until heated through, then stir in the basil and season again to taste with salt and pepper.
~ Reduce the heat to low, fold in the cooked whole wheat spaghetti and 1/4 to 1/2 cup reserved cooking water (just enough to moisten the sauce a bit more). Heat through again, then turn off the heat, fold in the Parmesan, and serve with a bit more Parmesan sprinkled on top!