Pasta with Pink Sauce (for two)

  

I felt a bit better today and so thought I would cook myself some pasta.  I had pinned this pink pasta sauce a few weeks back that I found on a site called The Dinner Bite. 

It looked very simple and effortless. It also uses store cupboard ingredients. I haven't been out shopping really so being able to use store cupboard ingredients is important!

I also didn't need to make a full recipe as there is only me, so I cut the recipe in half! 

I really would have liked to have some garlic bread with it, and a nice salad, but I have had to make do with what I have to work with, so no garlic bread or salad for now!

Creamy and delicious, this is such a wonderful comfort food recipe and was just what I needed to lift my spirits. I had tried to make myself a pizza at the weekend.  I only had a boxed pizza mix and when I went to top it, there was nothing to put on it but onions and cheese.

 

I don't mind saying it was the worst pizza I have ever made!  BLECCH!  That sauce in the packaged mix is really rank!  Well, I think so at any rate. I would have been much better off making my own sauce.

My cousin owns a pizza place here in town. They have a new pizza on the Menu.  Cheese Steak Pizza. It sounds really nice.  I am going to get one on Saturday and am inviting my family over to enjoy it with me!  I'll let you know how it goes! 

 

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE PASTA WITH PINK SAUCE 

Very simple store cupboard ingredients.  Very simple. 

• 1 1/3 cups (160g) dry rigatoni noodles
• 7 fluid ounces (175g) tomato passata (pureed tomatoes)
• 1/2 TBS butter
• 1/2 TBS light olive oil
• 2 TBS finely chopped onion
• 1 large clove garlic, peeled and finely chopped
• 1/2 tsp dried basil
• 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
• pinch of red chili flakes (optional)
• 1/4 cup (60ml) milk
• 1/4 cup (60ml) heavy cream (whipping cream)
• 1/4 cup (45g) grated Parmesan cheese
• salt and black pepper to taste

 

I am sure you could use any tubular shaped pasta, or pasta that has ridges to hug the sauce. I just was lucky enough to have some rigatoni in my cupboard which worked beautifully. 

Lots of holes to collect the sauce and ridges to hold onto it.

Passata is a type of tomato product which is basically pureed and sieved tomatoes. It is not tomato sauce, but is much thicker than tomato sauce. It is not like tomato paste. It is pure tomatoes, very finely pureed with no lumps. It usually comes in jars. The brand I used was Mutti.

I wish I could get Cirio here in Canada, but I cannot.

 

3 TBS finely chopped onion is about the same as one small onion, very finely chopped.  Make sure your garlic is a nice big fat clove so you can get lots of garlic flavor into the sauce.

She used some dried jalapeno pepper in her sauce.  I thought hot chili pepper flakes would do about the same thing.  Just a pinch, but if you are not a fan of heat, leave them out altogether.

She used semi-skimmed milk. I used whole milk. I only keep the one kind of milk in my house.  Whipping cream is good to use. In the UK I would use double cream.

 

If possible grate your own cheese. If not, at least use a very good quality already grated and by that I mean NOT the green can. 

I liked that the recipe used dry herbs. Its not fresh herb season in my garden yet, and of course I can't go to the store. 

There is no substitute for real butter. I use light olive oil for cooking purposes. Save the extra virgin olive oil for dishes where you really want to taste its rich flavor. This is not that dish.

HOW TO MAKE PASTA WITH PINK SAUCE

This really was very simple, quick and easy to make!

Cook the pasta according to the package directions in lightly salted water, just to al dente. Reserve some of the pasta water when draining for later. Set aside and keep warm.

Heat the butter and oil together until the butter starts to foam. Add the onions. Sauté until soft and translucent without browning. Stir frequently. Keep a close watch. Once the onions have softened stir in the garlic. Cook for a further minute until quite fragrant.

Add the tomato passata, milk, cream, basil, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, stirring to combine. Reduce the heat to a slow simmer and simmer for 5 to 7 minutes.

Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in the grated cheese, stirring it in until it has melted completely. Add the drained pasta. If the sauce is a bit too thick you can add a bit of the reserved pasta water. Heat through.

Serve and enjoy with additional cheese to sprinkle on top if desired.  A nice salad and garlic bread on the side would go wonderfully! 

 

This was so delicious that I found myself dipping into it after I enjoyed my single serving.  I couldn't resist sticking my fork in again and again.  It was so tasty and I am such a glutton!  Especially when it comes to pasta and sauce.

If you wanted to you could add some chicken to the dish, or even beef.  I was quite happy with it just the way that it was.  I was missing some😭 garlic bread however.   I love bread and pasta together.  Guess its time to dig out the bread machine and get it going! 

Some other pasta recipes here in The English Kitchen which you might enjoy are:

 PASTA E PISELLI - Simple ingredients put together in a simple way.  Pasta, peas, water and cheese. It doesn't get any simpler or easier than this. You wouldn't think that simple things like this could come together in such a delicious way, but like magic, they do!  I love this.

LEMON & GREEN OLIVE PASTA - If you are looking to try out a new pasta dish this week look no further. This one is a winning combination all round. Although the quantities are for only two people, you can very easily multiply them to feed more! It always amazes me when a few simple ingredients come together in an unbelievably delicious way. If you love the flavors of lemon and good green olives you are going to adore this simple pasta dish. Incredibly tasty and very special.

Yield: 2

Author: Marie Rayner

Pasta with Pink Sauce (for two)

Prep time: 5 MinCook time: 15 MinTotal time: 20 Min

Rich, creamy, delicious and comforting. This is very simple to make. It also used basic store cupboard ingredients.

Ingredients

• 1 1/3 cups (160g) dry rigatoni noodles
• 7 fluid ounces (175g) tomato passata (pureed tomatoes)
• 1/2 TBS butter
• 1/2 TBS light olive oil
• 2 TBS finely chopped onion
• 1 large clove garlic, peeled and finely chopped
• 1/2 tsp dried basil
• 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
• pinch of red chili flakes (optional)
• 1/4 cup (60ml) milk
• 1/4 cup (60ml) heavy cream (whipping cream)
• 1/4 cup (45g) grated Parmesan cheese
• salt and black pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Cook the pasta according to the package directions in lightly salted water, just to al dente. Reserve some of the pasta water when draining for later. Set aside and keep warm.
2. Heat the butter and oil together until the butter starts to foam. Add the onions. Sauté until soft and translucent without browning. Stir frequently. Keep a close watch. Once the onions have softened stir in the garlic. Cook for a further minute until quite fragrant.
3. Add the tomato passata, milk, cream, basil, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, stirring to combine. Reduce the heat to a slow simmer and simmer for 5 to 7 minutes.
4. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in the grated cheese, stirring it in until it has melted completely. Add the drained pasta. If the sauce is a bit too thick you can add a bit of the reserved pasta water. Heat through.
5. Serve and enjoy with additional cheese to sprinkle on top if desired.

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