flashback to childhood: aroni pasta!

so when i was growing up, my mom made dinner almost every night.  occasionally, she would have back-to-school night or parent-teacher conferences, so she would get home late and my dad would be in charge of dinner.  in my household, we made a menu every week so we always knew what was for dinner and who would be home when.  on those nights that my dad would have to cook, my mom would ask me and my brother what we wanted him to make.  and every single time we would shout the same thing and it always made its way on to the menu... aroni.


the name does require a little bit of an explanation, but i honestly couldn't tell you the whole story behind it.  all i know is that it is similar in very few ways to the "rice a roni" box pasta meals, but that our much more delicious version took a piece of its name.  why its called specifically "aroni" i couldn't tell you, but i guarantee if you like pasta, vegetables, and cheese, you will not be disappointed!

since this was a meal my dad could make for us kids, it is pretty simple.  here's the ingredient list:
-one box of wagon-wheel pasta (no other shape will do.. this is KEY to making aroni!)
-one jar of your favorite marinara sauce (or make your own!)
-one pint of mushrooms, sliced
-one green pepper
-one medium onion
-one large bag of fresh baby spinach
-1/2 lb. of your favorite kielbasa sausage
-one bag of the shredded cheese of your choice (cheddar, mozz, anything will do)
-soy sauce (i'll explain later...)
-garlic
-olive oil, S&P

first thing's first: put a large pasta pot of water on to boil.  my dad always started off by chopping up all the veg.  dice the onion, dice the green pepper, and slice the button mushrooms (if they aren't already pre-sliced).  toss them in a large skillet with a little olive oil and a nice spoonful of minced garlic (or one fresh clove).  sauté until tender!

at this point, drop your wagon-wheels into the boiling water and cook according to the package directions!  (8-10 minutes generally)

next, cut up your kielbasa (ready-to-eat, not raw) into small pieces and toss into the skillet with the vegetables.  sauté this all together until the sausage is heated through.  at this point, add a splash of soy sauce.  this was my dad's secret ingredient and he always added it to his aroni-- it gives the whole dish a new layer of flavor and adds a nice salty bite to the vegetables!  drain the pasta and let it cool in the pasta pot while you finish the sauce. 

now for the last few things:  add the ENTIRE box of fresh baby spinach to the skillet and cook it down until it has wilted and absorbed the flavor of the other vegetables.  once wilted, add the jar of marinara sauce to the mess o' veg and cook until everything is heated together.  season with salt and pepper to taste!  finally, add the simmering sauce to the pasta in its pasta pot and stir it around until everything is coated with flavor.  for my favorite part, add a few large handfuls of shredded cheese to the mixture and toss it around until it gets all melty and incorporated. 

 dish up in a large bowl with a fork and an appetite!  this is such a delicious blast from the past, and i hope you enjoy it as much as i do!  thanks for making this for me, daddy!

Aroni a la John