I have a pasta obsession. Its true. I put my hand up. I cannot resist a dish of fine pasta. I collect pasta like little boys collect bubblegum cards as well. I have a cupboard full of a whole variety of different pasta shapes and sizes.
Whenever I see pasta on offer at the shops, or if I see a different shape that I would like to try, I cannot resist buying it. Dry pasta will keep for a very long time in the cupboard and in fact it will keep for two to three years past its sell by date in all actuality.
That makes it an excellent store cupboard ingredient. Pasta is really quite good for you. It has gotten a bad rap in recent years, and quite undeservedly so. Recently published research indicates that pasta consumption does not contribute to obesity, and has actually been linked to a lower body mass index.
When surveying the eating habits of over 23,000 Italians, researchers found that pasta did not correlate to waist size or BMI among those who had been studied. In all truth pasta is an important component of the Mediterranean diet and has a low glycemic index. (Low GI) Especially if you use a whole grain pasta, which I like to do if I can.
Pasta makes the perfect foundation for a healthy, nutritious and satisfying meal. It is the ideal partner for many other foods, vegetables, beans, fish poultry, red meat, cheeses, eggs, etc. It is also an excellent source of complex carbohydrates.
Low sodium, cholesterol free, and filled with important vitamins such as folic acid, iron and B-vitamins, pasta is and should be an important part of a well-balanced diet. I try to make it a part of my diet several times a week.
Its also fairly inexpensive to buy, and is a great filler-upper! Abundantly versatile, pasta is one ingredient that I would not be without in my store cupboard.
This recipe for Easy Tomato Pasta was adapted from a recipe I found on the BBC Good Food site the other day. Attributed to the chef Lesley Waters, it is not only quite an inexpensive meal to prepare but makes a great use of store cupboard ingredients as well.
Delicious, filling as well as budget and family friendly. Quantities are given for two servings, but it can easily be multiplied to serve more.
Simple store cupboard ingredients. There is the option of adding sliced frankfurters to this dish, but you needn't do so if you want to keep it vegetarian friendly. Or you could add other bits of meat such as ham, spam, tinned corned beef, bacon, etc.
- 1TBS light olive oil
- 1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped
- 1 clove garlic, peeled and finely minced
- 14 oz (400g) tin of chopped tomatoes in juice, undrained
- pinch sugar
- few dashes Worcestershire sauce
- 3 1/2 ounces (scant cup/100g) rigatoni or other tubular pasta shape
- 1/2 cup (50g) cheddar or gruyere cheese, grated
- a hunk of baguette or a slice of bread, coarsely grated
- salt and pepper to taste
Optional:
- 2 frankfurters/hotdogs, sliced
I always have tinned tomatoes in my larder. I like to keep a few larger cans of whole tomatoes for times when I am cooking something large, but for the most part I keep the smaller 400g tins, which are better suited to the smaller household.
Having said that however, you can very easily freeze the tomatoes which don't get used from a larger tin in an airproof freezer container.
Its a lot cheaper to grate your own cheese if you can. I do that most of the time. This recipe also makes use of stale bread in the topping. I used a thick slice of stale cheese bread that I had leftover from a loaf I had bought at the local farm market. It was delicious!
A very simple dressing to make uses 1/2 TBS of mayonnaise, 2 TBS oil, 1 TBS cider vinegar and 1 teaspoon of honey or sugar. I add seasoning and some dried dillweed to taste. I just shake this all together in a jar and toss the salad together with it. Its delicious!
HOW TO MAKE EASY TOMATO PASTA
Nothing could be simpler. This is a real doddle.
Preheat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and sauté until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about a minute longer.
Add the undrained tomatoes and the sugar. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes.
Cook the pasta until al dente according to the package directions. Drain well, rinse and drain again.
Add the Worcestershire sauce to the tomato sauce and season to taste. If you are using the frankfurters, add them to the sauce now. Pour this mixture into a heat-proof dish.
Mix the bread crumbs and cheese together. Scatter the cheesy crumbs over top of the pasta in the dish.
Preheat the grill/broiler to high.
Pop the cheese crumb coated dish under the grill and toast for 3 to 5 minutes, until bubbling hot and golden. Serve hot with a salad on the side.
This was surprisingly delicious. Such a simple meal, with very little effort and so economical. The sauce is simple and yet very tasty.
I did add hotdogs, and they also went surprisingly well with the remainder of the ingredients. Don't leave out the Worcestershire sauce. It really adds a bit of tasty magic!
Some other pasta dishes in The English Kitchen that you might also enjoy are:
PASTA WITH CHICKEN BROTH, BUTTER & CHEESE - This brilliant pasta dish is a beautiful example of simple and uncomplicated foods. Food done well and put together in a most delicious way. Stock and pasta are the basis of this very simple and yet delicious dish in which pasta is quite simply cooked in a quantity of stock . . . It doesn't get much easier than this.
SAUCY PASTA HOOPS - Did you used to like Spaghetti hoops (Spaghetti-o's) when you were a child? It wasn't something we had very often but when we did it was a real favorite! A grown up version of a childhood favorite, all cooked in one pan. Rich and cheesy and oh so easy to make! NO fuss, NO muss, and delicious to boot.
Yield: 2 servings
Easy Tomato Pasta
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 30 MinTotal time: 40 Min
A quick, easy, economical and adaptably hearty pasta dish for two!
Ingredients
- 1TBS light olive oil
- 1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped
- 1 clove garlic, peeled and finely minced
- 14 oz (400g) tin of chopped tomatoes in juice, undrained
- pinch sugar
- few dashes Worcestershire sauce
- 3 1/2 ounces (scant cup/100g) rigatoni or other tubular pasta shape
- 1/2 cup (50g) cheddar or gruyere cheese, grated
- a hunk of baguette or a slice of bread, coarsely grated
- salt and pepper to taste
Optional:
- 2 frankfurters/hotdogs, sliced
Instructions
- Preheat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and sauté until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about a minute longer.
- Add the undrained tomatoes and the sugar. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes.
- Cook the pasta until al dente according to the package directions. Drain well, rinse and drain again.
- Add the Worcestershire sauce to the tomato sauce and season to taste. If you are using the frankfurters, add them to the sauce now. Pour this mixture into a heat-proof dish.
- Mix the bread crumbs and cheese together. Scatter the cheesy crumbs over top of the pasta in the dish.
- Preheat the grill/broiler to high.
- Pop the cheese crumb coated dish under the grill and toast for 3 to 5 minutes, until bubbling hot and golden. Serve hot with a salad on the side.
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