Pasta lovers can get creative by tossing exotic vegetables into their dishes. For instance, adding fennel or rainbow Swiss chard to pasta puts a new spin on an old noodle. Other vegetables that work well with pasta include escarole, broccoli rabe, whole tomatoes and beans. Or you can try a Pasta Prima Vera that's made with a mixture of root vegetables. Pasta is part of a Mediterranean diet and when balanced and combined with other foods, is not an unhealthy choice. To get more fiber in your diet, cook with one of the many whole and durum wheat pastas on the market, too.