Saffron Rotini

I have to admit, there is a lot of new ingredients for me in this recipe, but I wanted to be brave. In addition, someone gave me some saffron, which was nice, and I had some goat cheese left over from a different recipe that I wanted to use, so it worked out well. I am not normally a fan of cooked carrots (although I love them raw) but I have been trying to eat them occasionally. The original recipe is from Clean Eating.

1 cup low-sodium chicken broth

2 tsp arrowroot

1/4 tsp crushed saffron threads

1/2 Tlbs olive oil

1 shallot, finely chopped

8 oz whole wheat rotini

1 cup peas

1/2 cup diced carrots

1/3 cup crumbled goat cheese

1/2 Tlbs chopped flat-leaf parsley

Put the chicken broth, arrowroot and saffron together in a small bowl with a tight-fitting lid. Shake it up and let it sit until you are ready, but shake it up again before using it. In a medium saucepan, warm the olive oil over medium heat. Add the shallot and let it cook for a couple of minutes, stirring often. Shake, then add the chicken broth mixture and turn the pan up to high(ish). Bring the sauce to a boil, stirring often, and it will also thicken slightly. Take it off the burner, cover the pan and let the mixture sit for ten minutes or so. While you are letting the sauce rest, boil water and then add the noodles and the carrots. Add the peas with just a couple of minutes left to cook and when the noodles are done, drain everything. Toss the sauce and the goat cheese in with the pasta. Garnish with parsley before serving.

I like goat cheese but am still getting used to the stronger flavor. Also, this didn't look quite like the picture, the cheese in the picture remained crumbly, whereas when I mixed the cheese in tonight it melted. This was also good, but changed the texture. It was easy and came together quickly, which is always a positive.

Rating: 4/5

Why? goat cheese is a strong flavor and I am not sure how I feel about it yet.