Here's a wild kitchen experiment inspired by Chef John of Foodwishes. com: Grilled Spaghetti
Wuff saw the Chef creating this on one of his YouTube videos, where he grilled some spaghetti noodles and used those to create a dish.

Vrghr loved the whimsey of that idea, and the results, but figured, "Why not grill EVERYTHING, and not just the noodles?"

YES! This created a fantastic pasta meal! The char and grilling on the veggies brought out all sorts of vibrant, deep flavors and nuances, but still keeps the flavors light and refreshing. This is not a heavy, marinara-style sauce. But it still has loads of fresh tomato flavor, along with the rest.

Toasting the noodles changed their texture somewhat, giving them a bit more "tooth" though they were still completely cooked. It also added some subtle "toasted bread" notes.
And the grilled veggies? *Chef's kiss* To quote the Koolaid guy, "OH YEAH!" *grin*

Now, you're still going to have to use your stovetop to finish this dish up, though wuff guesses you could take your skillet out to the grill and finish everything there.
But frankly, all that heat from the grill fires around the pan are hard on this wuff's paws, and Vrghr prefers the level of control he can get from a stove-top burner. But hey, you do you!

The flavors here were WONDERFUL! The maillard, caramelized notes the grilling brought to all the veggies. The hints of smoke and char. The sweetness of the converted sugars. Oh, they mixed so well!

Technically, you could likely achieve very similar results using the broiler on your oven, and skip toasting the pasta noodles. But think of the response you'll get when you tell your guests that you grilled the plate of the spaghetti! *GRIN*

NOTE: Vrghr's market had Calabacita (Mexican) Squash. These are very similar to Zucchini squash, with whiter, sweeter flesh and thinner skins. Vrghr thought they'd be perfect in this (and they were) but you can sub in zucchini if you can't find them.
NOTE 2: This is nearly a Vegan/Vegetarian dish, except for the butter, chicken stock, and cheese. You can take this "all the way" by leaving out the butter and adding a bit more olive oil, using Vegetable Stock for the Chicken Stock, and subbing in vegetarian cheese or leaving it out all together

Here's what wuff did:

INGREDIENTS:
For the Grilled Veggies:
1 lb thick pasta noodles (thick spaghetti, fettuccini, linguini, etc.)
5-6 vine ripe Tomatoes (get good fresh ones from the farmer's market if you can. They're a key flavor ingredient)
4 Calabacita (can sub Zucchini) Squash, stalk end removed and sliced lengthwise into quarters
1 large white or yellow Onion, cut in half
4 Poblano Peppers, split and seeds/membrane removed
2 Jalapeno Peppers, split and seeds/membrane removed
2 red Bell Peppers, cut into quarters with seeds/membrane removed
1 large Portobello Mushroom cap, sliced

4 Cups Chicken Broth (+ more or water, per sauce thickness preferences)
2 TBS Butter
2 TBS Olive Oil
1 head of Garlic, cloves removed and smashed
1/4 C chopped Fresh Parsley
2 TBS Tomato Paste
1 TBS Italian Herb paste
2 tsp Anchovy Paste (or 2 anchovy fillets)
1 tsp Lowry's Seasoned Salt
1 tsp ground Black Pepper
2-3 TBS fresh Basil, cut into small shreds
1/4-1/3 C fresh grated Parmesan Cheese (plus a bit more for garnish)
More fresh chopped parsley for garnish

OPTIONAL: Cayenne Pepper or Ground Red Pepper Flakes, to taste (depends on your enjoyment of heat)

Tools:
BBQ Grill
Stick (immersion) Blender

DIRECTIONS:
Slice up your grilling veggies as listed in INGREDIENTS. Note, the calabacita (Mexican squash) has a very thin, light skin and doesn't need to be peeled. If you sub Zucchini you can peel that or leave the skins intact to your preference

Clean and oil your grill grates, or use Grill Spray. The veggies get REAL tender as they grill and if there's any sticking, you're going to have issues with them squishing or tearing and falling through the grates

Add the veggies to the hot grill and grill them, turning as needed, until you get good brown and charred notes and they get tender and fragrant. Remove to your big skillet or sheet pan and add the uncooked pasta noodles to the grill. Spread them out and using tongs or spatula, move them about until you can nice toasty color on most of them. It's okay if the ends char a bit or some don't toast as much. Remove to a tray to wait further cooking

Bring all the veggies and pasta in to the stove

In a very large skillet over medium high heat, melt 2 TBS butter with 2 TBS olive oil until the butter starts to foam

While the butter is melting, slice the squash and mushrooms into bite-size pieces, dice up the grilled onions and chop up the rest of the veggies. Reserve the mushrooms and squash separately

Add the onions and smashed garlic to the hot oil/butter and sprinkle with some of the sale, and sauté until the garlic is fragrant. Slide them to the edges of the pan and add the anchovy and tomato paste and sauté until the tomato paste is slightly caramelized. Squeeze in the Italian Herb paste. If desired, add the optional crushed red pepper or cayenne pepper. Add the rest of the chopped veggies except the squash and mushrooms and the remainder or the salt plus the pepper, and stir everything together to let their flavors get to know one another

Add the chicken (or veggie) stock and half of the fresh basil, parsley, and half the grated cheese. Stir to combine and let simmer long enough for the cheese to melt. Using the immersion (stick) blender, blend everything until smooth and allow to simmer another couple minutes to reduce a bit and thicken

Add the bite-size squash and mushroom pieces to the sauce. Add the toasted pasta noodles and press in to submerge. Allow to lightly boil (may want to cover with a splatter-guard to save clean up) until the noodles become tender, stirring occasionally to prevent the sauce from scorching on the bottom and the noodles from sticking together. If needed, add more stock or water if the sauce gets too thick. If too thin, increase heat to reduce sauce faster to desired thickness

When noodles are desired tenderness, add the remaining fresh basil, parsley, and cheese. Stir and cook very briefly to refresh those flavors

Serve onto waiting plates and garnish with a bit more chopped parsley and grated cheese

!DEVOUR!