Why are they springy?

I copied this recipe from one of my favorite bloggers of all time: The Pioneer Woman! If you haven't checked out her blog, you really should. She has got so much information on anything you might want to know. Plus, she is hilarious! I particularly like her Cooking and Photography tabs. So this is a recipe for "Springy Shells" that came from her blog. I really don't get the name though. They aren't really springy. Maybe it is a play on words? Like for the Spring season? The recipe uses a lot of veggies, which may indicate Spring. I just don't know. But I was attracted to the name and had to try the recipe for that reason alone.

WARNING: Yes, there is a warning that comes with this recipe. It is HUGE! I made the whole thing becuase I was too lazy to try and half it. And we will probably be eating Springy Shells until the cows come home. And, well, since we don't have any cows, that could be a very long time. Although there are cows up on Biltmore . . . maybe I could use those for my metaphor? Oh, sorry, I got sidetracked. Anyway, this is great if you need to feed a lot of people. But for two people I highly recommend halfing it. That is, unless you really love leftovers!

Springy Shells

Ingredients:

16 oz medium pasta shells or any other short pasta

1 pound asparagus, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces

1/2 pound broccoli, cut into small florettes

1/2 pound zucchini, diced

1/2 cup frozen peas

3 green onions sliced (white and light green parts)

3 cloves garlic, minced

4 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons olive oil

20-22 oz whole milk ricotta cheese (Pioneer Woman would KILL me, but I used the skim milk version)

2 eggs

1/2 teaspoon salt

black pepper

1 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, greated

extra olive oil for drizzling

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. Cook pasta until extremely al dente - with still quite a bit of bite.

3. Melt butter with the olive oil over medium-low to medium heat, then add garlic.

4. Add the asparagus and cook for 5 minutes. Sprinkle in some salt. Add the broccoli and cook for one minute, then add the zucchini and cook for one or two more minutes. (the original recipe forgot to mention when you add the green onions, so I did it here). Add the frozen peas, stir together, then turn off the heat. Set aside.

5. In a separate bowl, mix the ricotta, eggs, salt, and pepper until well combined.

6. To assemble, butter a 9x13 inch baking dish. Add half the pasta, then spread 1/3 cup of the ricotta mixture over the surface (I just estimated 1/3 of the mixture actually). Sprinkle 1/3 Parmesan cheese over the ricotta, then 1/2 the vegetables.

7. Repeat with the rest of the pasta, the rest of the ricotta, another 1/3 of the Parmesan. End with the rest of the vegetables and the rest of the Parmesan.

8. Drizzle with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil, then bake for 25 minutes.

9. Serve with extra Parmesan, crusty French bread, and chilled white wine. (I skipped the bread).

The recipe had a good taste and was enjoyable. I won't lie and say it is one of my favorites, but I did enjoy it and will try to make it every so often to change up my routine!