As the daughter of first generation Sicilian, Italian parents, and grandparents who came to America from Sicily, I was weaned on pasta. Our family enjoyed pasta at least three times weekly - pasta with peas, with cauliflower, with broccoli, with lentils, with cannellini beans and tomatoes, and, of course, the star of them all - spaghetti with meatballs and sausage. You name any veggie and my grandmother who lived with us would create a decadent meal with veggies and pasta. Our dinners were fabulous, and always served with a side salad. Don't roll over, grandma, I leave out the olive oil - yes, even the extra-virgin, cold-pressed oil from Italy!