Solo eating! There are a lot of days when I come home from work and it’s only me and Miss Corona. Pete is in Calgary and I’m not out with friends for dinner every night. Usually, there are leftovers in my fridge as I normally cook for four. If I haven’t got anything on the go, my initial instinct is to be lazy and eat a sandwich (oh the glamour!) or thaw something that I’ve made in a larger quantity and frozen (I freeze my soups into single serving containers).
There are other times that I come home and want to whip up something simple and easy, but also new. This fresh fast pasta sauce is a perfect dish for those days. Most of the ingredients are probably already in your fridge; the list isn’t long. If you don’t have fresh cherry or grape tomatoes, you can also use frozen ones [ELIN’sTIP: I freeze grape or cherry tomatoes when I’ve bought too large a quantity – they are perfect for sauces or Gazpacho]. This dish pulls together really quickly – it actually takes longer to boil the water and cook the pasta – and it is pretty healthy! Dinner for one coming up!
This is faster and cheaper than ordering take-out! Students, PIN this! Here is a great one for you! You can whip this dish up quickly and still have time to study for exams. You can double it or quadruple it to make a meal for more people, use as a side dish, or have leftovers for the next day.
Prep time: 5 minutes; Cook time: 15 minutes (not even); Serves: 1
What you need:
- 1 small shallot (or small onion) diced
- 1 small clove garlic, minced (or 1/2 tsp jarred crushed garlic)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 heaping cup grape or cherry tomatoes (approximately 20 small)
- 1 tbsp fresh basil, chopped (or 1/2 tbsp dried basil)
- 1 tsp fresh oregano, chopped (or 1/2 tsp dried oregano)
- 1 tsp My Go-To Spice Mix (optional or to taste if you want to add a kick of spice)
- 1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper
- 1/4 tsp salt
- pinch sugar (optional)
- 1 – 1 1/4 cups (depending on how hungry you are) cooked spaghetti (reserve 1/2 cup cooking water)
- Freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (garnish)
What you do:
- Boil your water and cook your pasta
- While pasta is cooking, in a large deep saucepan or pot over medium-high heat, add the olive oil
- Add the shallot/onion and garlic, stir
- Add My Go-To Spice Mix, stir
- Add the cherry/grape tomatoes
- Add the basil, oregano, salt, pepper and sugar (if using)
- Stir
- Keep stirring occasionally until tomatoes burst, about 10 minutes
- You can break the tomatoes up a bit with the back of the spoon
- Add the cooked pasta to the sauce, stir
- Add the reserved cooking water a few tablespoons at a time to get the desired sauce thickness – you want it to coat the spaghetti
- Serve with additional My Go-To Spice Mix and grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
thanks elin …. so simple and my fav type of pasta. fresh and simple.
Thanks Nadine! Thought this one might be up alley. Let me know what you think! Thanks for reading!
This looks so easy! Must try 🙂
Thanks Celeste! Easy and kid friendly! Let me know what you think. Thanks for reading!
Tried it today, Elin, with some tomatoes that were on their last legs. It was wonderful!
Nancy, so glad to hear! Thanks for the note!
This is absolutely gorgeous – love fresh & light pasta meals for the summer – whether it’s for 1 or 4 – this is definitely a hit – especially that glass of red on the side 😉 Cheers Elin! Xo – Nikki
Thanks Nikki! I am going to be so jealous of your gorgeous farm tomatoes this summer! Oh the sauce you could make with those babies!!!! (And always better with a glass of red!)