Your June Recipes Are Here
Weeknight Simple: Pasta Edition
While it's still pleasant enough to turn on the stove or oven without breaking a sweat, I thought—why not make some pasta?
Welcome to the June edition of Weeknight Simple. This month, we're diving into everyone's favorite comfort food, but with a little twist: I’m showing you three delicious ways to add protein to pasta night. Sure, you can start with a high-protein pasta (and I’ll tell you about my favorite options), but you can also give your regular pasta a protein tune-up—with simple, whole ingredients.
That’s really the heart of Weeknight Simple: uncomplicated, deeply flavorful vegetarian meals you can count on to anchor your week. Each month, you’ll find three curated recipes that are moderately low in carbs, high in protein, and always centered on whole foods, plus a bonus recipe later in the month! Whether you're batch-cooking for the week or throwing something together between errands, these recipes are built for real life, with room to adapt based on your mood, pantry, or dietary needs.
If you're a free subscriber, you get to vote on which recipe will be featured in next week’s free newsletter—so don’t miss that section at the bottom.
Here’s what’s on the menu this month:
Greenest Goddess Pasta
This is not your average green goddess. She’s greener, bolder, and absolutely packed—broccoli, zucchini, spinach, basil, scallions, parsley and your choice of cheese or nutritional yeast all whirl together into a sauce brimming with goodness. It's become a mainstay in my fridge, thanks to a very specific request from my daughter: more veggies, but… you know, hidden.
I often serve this with a high-protein, low-carb pasta like Kaizen (made of lupini beans) so I can make room for one of my favorite pairings: a few golden roasted potatoes tossed right in. Some fresh or frozen corn would also go really well here. Feel free to use whatever pasta works for you. A scatter of nuts, and a spoonful of pickled onions add welcome texture and brightness to the bowl.
Baked Feta Pasta w/Summer Veg
A weeknight pasta that practically cooks itself. A block of feta nestled among cherry tomatoes, zucchini, and eggplant, all roasted until soft and bubbling while your pasta cooks quietly on the back burner. Stir it all together and you get a sauce that’s creamy, tangy, and textured—summer vegetables melting into each other, the feta lending body and a generous hit of protein.
I often make this with a lentil- or bean-based pasta to keep the protein content up. My favorite was Zenb, a yellow pea pasta that sadly disappeared from U.S. shelves—but the good news is, there are plenty of great options out there. Look for one with at least 12g of protein per 2 oz serving, and see what works best for your taste and texture preferences. If you’re after a one-dish dinner, you can also stir in two cans of beans right into the bake.
Pasta Salad with Red Pepper Mayo
A chilled pasta salad that feels familiar—macaroni elbows, crunchy vegetables, a creamy dressing—but with just enough of a twist to make you notice. The red pepper mayo is where the magic happens: it’s velvety, vibrant, and surprisingly high in protein thanks to a base of tofu, Greek yogurt, or cottage cheese. I lean toward tofu for its body and richness—it gives the sauce a satisfying thickness that clings lovingly to every piece of pasta.
Unlike our earlier pasta dishes, this one uses regular pasta (I often go with classic Barilla elbows) and lets the sauce carry most of the protein load. Leave out the red pepper if you're after a more traditional mayo flavor. Served cold, this salad makes an excellent side for veggie burgers.
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