[goldenface]

I love pasta but would like to be able to make something simple and tasty that is not Spaghetti Bolognese.

Any simple tasty recipes with accessible ingredients?

[lukeskywalker1]

Carbonara, pasta salad, lasagna, pasta bake, they're all pretty easy.

[grassmarket]

Here's a few, all can be made in the time it takes to boil the pasta.

Pesto is really easy to make if you have a big pestle & mortar. Grind some basil, a little rock salt, parmesan cheese and pine nuts in mortar, mix in some olive oil and ready to eat on its own. Good with any kind of pasta.

Also sliced red onions with balsamic vinegar

http://www.jamieoliver.com/forum/vie...php?pid=229944

You can use black olive as well or instead of the tomatoes. Good with spaghetti.

Or another. Boil some frozen small sweet petits pois in a pan. Empty the peas and water out, drop in a couple of good spoonfuls of pesto, add the same of mascarpone or creme fraiche, mix together without boiling and then stir in the peas again. For variation, add pancetta. Good with hollow or shell pasta, to pick up the peas.

[goldenface]

Quote:

Originally Posted by grassmarket

Or another. Boil some frozen small sweet petits pois in a pan. Empty the peas and water out, drop in a couple of good spoonfuls of pesto, add the same of mascarpone or creme fraiche, mix together without boiling and then stir in the peas again. For variation, add pancetta. Good with hollow or shell pasta, to pick up the peas.

This sounds very nice, thanks.

[walterwhite]

Carbonara is ridiculously quick and easy. Boil pasta, fry pancetta, whisk eggs add parmesan.

[IvanIV]

Spagetti Aglio e Olio, very simple, tastes great. I checked the first recipe on YT and it looks good. I also usually add chilli with the garlic.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjmYkPkjnVo

[hobbes]

small jar of tomato paste (or one of those stir in pots even), spoonful of crème fraiche or plain yogurt.

Add to drained hot pasta - add a spoonful of the boiling pasta water back in. Add small tin of tuna or some chopped or shredded ham or chicken. Add a few capers or olives- optional- return to low heat till warm though- maybe bit of cheese on top. 20 mins from scratch.

[burton07]

Spaghetti Napolitana (not sure about the sp.) is easy.

Peel and chop an onion and 2 cloves garlic. Fry till onion is soft.
Add
1 tblsp tomato paste
1 tin chopped tomatoes (level tsp of sugar counteracts some of the acidity)
seasoning
Italian herbs
1/4 Tsp celery salt.

Cook on a low heat for about 30 minutes and blend/liquidise and pour over any cooked pasta.

Other things can be added:
Meat Balls
Sausages
Celery and/or Chopped bacon added with the onions
Parmesan Cheese

[JulesF]

Fry some sliced chorizo until lots of the red oil has come out. Remove chorizo from pan and add diced chicken, fry until cooked. Add chorizo back in along with some passata. Bring up to heat and toss with your pasta. Serve with fresh basil sprinkled over and lots of parmesan.

[sodavlac]

Blimey, I'm much more downmarket than the people who have posted so far. Here's the kind of thing I do:

Fry up an onion or two, optional garlic, dump in 2 or 3 cans of tuna (drained), add a can of chopped tomatoes and a bit of chilli powder. Serve with pasta and grated cheese. Or do the exact same recipe with cans of sardines/pilchards in tomato sauce instead of using tuna.

Fry up some mushrooms, onions and cheapo frying steak. Add a carton or two (depending on how much you're making) of passatta and 2-3 beef stock cubes, optional herbs. Serve with pasta, grated cheese too if you want it.

Fry up some onion, mushrooms, diced chicken breast and bacon. Bung on some carbonara sauce or make it. Season. Serve with pasta.

Fry up some onion, mushrooms and chicken livers. Add soured cream. Season. Serve with pasta.

Fry up some diced chicken and onion, add canned ratatouille. Season. Serve with pasta and grate some cheese on too.

Fry up some cabbage, onion and diced pork. Add soured cream and cottage cheese. Serve with pasta. Bit bland that one.

Fry up some onion, thinly sliced carrot and diced chicken. Add any or all of aubergine, courgette, mushrooms. Chuck in a tin of tomato soup. Grate some cheese in there. Serve with pasta.

I often play around with the ingredients a bit, changing things here and there, adding a little this or a little that.

[swingaleg]

I don't eat pasta much now but when I did one of my favourites was frankfurter and pasta

basically just chop up frankfurters into small pieces and fry with onion & garlic, add some tomatoes ans quickly stir fry

cook any sort of pasta in a seperate pan, when ready drain it and put it in the pan with the frankfurter sauce and whisk it around a bit to get all the juices and serve

It's the 'smoked' flavour from the franffurters that's so good........

sometimes used ripped up salami instead of furters

[Sebastian1992]

I usually do something similar to this: http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/fe..._alfredo_47554

[chopsim]

Fry onions, garlic. Add a splash of white wine. Add broccoli and blue cheese then add cooked linguine. A dash of cream finishes it off. My signature dish.

[clm2071]

Macaroni cheese

Can be as simple or luxurious as you like. I add a bit of mustard powder to the cheese sauce and use a really good quality cheese, add a bit of pancetta and sprinkle some toasted garlic breadcrumbs over the top.

[WombatDeath]

Put a large pan of water on the boil for your pasta.

Thinly slice an onion. Five minutes or so before your pan of water is boiling, fry the onion for a few minutes with some chopped bacon (or pancetta or lardons) and some chopped or crushed garlic. Add a bottle of passata and some chopped chilli. Season, and then leave to simmer gently.

When your large pan of water is boiling, add the pasta. I use linguine or spaghetti but anything will work. Try to time it so that the water comes to the boil at roughly the time that you add the passata to your sauce, but don't worry about it.

When the pasta is ready, drain it and mix it into your sauce. Serve with sprinklings of grated cheese.

[missyalicia]

Nice and simple: olive oil, cherry tomatoes and sometimes bacon mixed with pasta.

[Aristaeus]

Alphabetti spaghetti: open tin, empty contents into bowl, put in microwave, improve you spelling.

Seriously though, fry some courgette, onion, garlic, carrot ribbons (use a veg peeler), mushrooms. add tin of chopped tomatoes, herbs, seasoning, etc. mix with pasta and top with cheese.

[LaVieEnRose]

The easiest one ever.

Cook the pasta.
Melt some butter and stir in a little Marmite. Mix it into the cooked drained pasta, adding a little of the pasta water if it needs loosening.
Black pepper and Parmesan over the top. Some chopped parsley if you like.

Just delicious, savoury comfort food.

[goldenface]

Lots of great suggestions. Thanks very much guys.

[Peg ODwyer]

We don't eat pasta much any more, but when I was a starving student it was pasta with a sauce of mayo, yogurt & a can of corned beef, & whatever veg was in the fridge, topped with cheese.

[stud u like]

Cook the pasta.
Fry onions and pancetta in a Le Crueset pot.
Add spinach
Add cream cheese
Add some water.

When the pasta is cooked, drain and add to the Le Creuset. Stir it all together. Serve.

[Toby LaRhone]

Quote:

Originally Posted by stud u like

Cook the pasta.
Fry onions and pancetta in a Le Crueset pot.
Add spinach
Add cream cheese
Add some water.

How critical is "a Le Crueset pot" to cooking pasta, onions, spinach, pancetta and cream cheese?
Could I do it in a sautée pan......
or an over priced Creuset pan ....😜

[stud u like]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Toby LaRhone

How critical is "a Le Crueset pot" to cooking pasta, onions, spinach, pancetta and cream cheese?
Could I do it in a sautée pan?

I like it's orangeness and firm bottom.

[Toby LaRhone]

Quote:

Originally Posted by stud u like

I like it's orangeness and firm bottom.

Other colours are available.

[Piazza]

Some of my (fairly) simple and accessible favourites:

Linguine with prawns - add some chilli flakes too

Roasted aubergine and goat's cheese pasta

Pasta puttanesca

Garlic lime chicken - I like to make this with chunks of chicken then add it to pasta with some yoghurt/ creme fraiche. The ingredient list looks long but it's all herbs and spices, and I don't usually add all of them.