White Sauce Pasta Ingredients:
Pasta (any kind, 3/4 cup)
Salt (1/2 teaspoon for boiling pasta, more to taste)
Water (4-5 cups for boiling pasta)
Oil (1/2 teaspoon for cooking veggies)
Carrot (1/4 cup, chopped)
Green Capsicum (1/4 cup, chopped)
Red Capsicum (1/4 cup, chopped)
Broccoli (1/4 cup, chopped)
Butter (1 1/2 tablespoons for making sauce)
Garlic (1 teaspoon, finely chopped, optional)
Maida (all purpose flour, 1 1/2 tablespoons for making sauce)
Milk (1 1/2 cups for making sauce)
Oregano (dried, 1/4 teaspoon, optional or use pizza seasonings)
Red Chili Flakes (1/4 teaspoon)
Black Pepper Powder (a pinch or use crushed pepper)
Cheese (grated, for garnishing)
Note: We used whole wheat pasta to make this dish healthier and kid friendly. But you can use any type of pasta you like.
Steps:
Cook the pasta in a big pot of boiling water with salt. Follow the instructions on the packet or cook for about 10-12 minutes until it is soft but not mushy. You can check by biting a piece of pasta. If it is too hard, cook some more.
Drain the water from the pasta and keep it aside.
In a pan or kadhai, heat oil on high heat. Add carrot, green capsicum, red capsicum, broccoli and salt. Cook and stir for 2-3 minutes until they are slightly cooked but still crunchy. Turn off the heat and take them out on a plate.
For White Sauce:
In the same pan or kadhai, heat butter on medium heat. Add garlic and sauté for 30 seconds.
Add maida and cook and stir for a minute.
Slowly add milk while stirring with a whisk to avoid lumps.
Cook and stir for 1-2 minutes until well mixed.
Lower the heat and keep stirring and cooking until the sauce becomes thick. It will take about 3-4 minutes depending on the size and thickness of the pan. You can tell it is thick enough when it sticks to the back of a spoon like in the picture here.
Add oregano, red chili flakes, black pepper powder and salt. Mix well.
Add the cooked veggies and pasta to the sauce. Mix well.
Turn off the heat. Transfer to a serving plate. Sprinkle cheese on top if you like. Enjoy your white sauce pasta while it is hot.
Tips and Variations:
The sauce will get thicker as it cools down. So eat your pasta while it is hot.
For more cheese flavor, add 2 tablespoons of grated cedar cheese or mozzarella cheese to the sauce in step 9.
Use any veggies you like. Sweet corn, button mushrooms, french beans, onion etc. (total 1 cup chopped veggies) are also good for this dish.
If you have leftover pasta, reheat it with 1/4 cup of milk or water to make the sauce thinner.
To make this dish for a large group, do these steps in advance: make the sauce, boil the pasta, and cook the veggies. Then before serving, reheat the sauce (add some water or milk if it is too thick), add the pasta and veggies, and cook for 1-2 minutes.
