From Bland Pasta to Something Out of Italy

Pasta is such versatile food. There are so many different kinds of pasta and so many different ways you can make it. It's also easy and cheap to make and if made right, tastes great. The key to any pasta is the sauce. I advise people not to make their own because it does take a long time and there are so many good store bought sauces out there. A very good one is Rao's but it can be pricey. My advice is to buy a plain tomato sauce from the grocery store at a price you feel comfortable with. Bring it home and pour it in a sauce pan over medium low heat. Add a little garlic (make sure it gets brown but not burnt), salt and pepper, and fresh basil if you have some. Despite these ingedients possibly already being in the sauce, adding them fresh will really bring out more flavor. If you don't want tomato sauce, you can do a nice olive oil and garlic, bolognese sauce, pesto sauce (which can be found in a lot of grocery stores), and a whole array of other sauces. When getting ready to make the pasta here are some tips. Boil the water with a pinch of kosher salt and a drop of olive oil. When the water boils, add the pasta and cook to the package's recommended cooking time. After it is finished, immediately take out and drain the water. Add to a bowl. At this point I drop in 1 tbsp. of butter (most of the butter packages these days show you on the butter wrapper how much is a tablespoon) but this is optional. Add the sauce. And the final addition which really makes a good pasta almost like a true Italian one, Parmesan cheese.

Parmsan cheese can be expensive. A little chunk can cost you almost 7 dollars. But you don't have to go to a Whole Foods to get it. Many places also sell it in containers already grated for less money.

Here are some pasta dishes that are easy to make.

Rigatoni with Eggplant and Mozarella
Cook the rigatoni according to the package's recommended time. Take an eggplant and cut up small pieces. They don't have to be of equal size and shape. However you cut is fine as long as there is some skin on one side and they are small. Also cut some mozarella into small pieces as well. In a pan pour a touch of olive oil over medium heat. Let that heat up and add the eggplant pieces. Cook for a couple minutes till somewhat soft. You will see the difference. Add the tomato sauce. Add the mozarella. Cook for a minute and add directly to the pasta.


Spaghetti Pomodoro
Cook the spaghetti according to the package's recommended time. In another pan add tomato sauce, fresh basil, garlic, salt and pepper. Make sure the garlic gets brown. When the pasta finishes cooking, drain it, add it to a bowl, and drop in 1 tbsp. of butter. Add the sauce. Top with some parmesan cheese and you are ready to serve it.


Linguini Primavera
This is a great dish because it is healthy since it contains so many vegetables but it also tastes great. Take whatever vegetables you have in the fridge. I usually use zucchini, mushrooms, squash, brocolli, and carrots. But it is up to you to use whatever vegetables you like. Chop the vegetables in very small pieces. Heat up 1 tbsp. of olive oil over medium heat and let it get hot. Then add the vegetables and cook for a couple of minutes until the vegetables get somewhat soft. Add the tomato sauce. And add this directly to the cooked linguini. Drop in 1 tbsp. butter, let it melt, and top with parmesan cheese and serve.

All 3 of these pasta dishes can be substituted with any pasta or any sauce. Pasta dishes very personal. It's up to you to test out which pasta you like best and which sauces you like best. Any questions, leave a comment!