Pasta Pignoli
25 Jul 2010 3 Comments
in Pasta Pignoli Tags: Delish, Nutritious Dishes, Pasta Dishes, Pasta Pignoli, Pasta Pignoli with Raisins, Pignoli, Quick Dinner Recipes, Recipes, Sun Dried Tomatoes
Last night’s dinner was a great success. This is a very quick and tasty dish. What makes it different from simple pasta dishes is the addition of a few ingredients. If you’re a pasta lover, you’ll like this slight variation.
Serves approx. 4-6
Prep Time: 20 minutes with sauce prepared earlier
Note: When I make pasta sauce, I always make more than I need for another night’s dinner. Generally, I start out with a basic tomato sauce with garlic, onion, and spices. When I prepare the evening’s dish, I add other ingredients, depending on what I’ve chosen to create for that particular nite. I freeze the plain sauce until it’s pasta night and add different ingredients. This dish was made with a base of plain tomato sauce.
Ingredients:
1 lb pasta (Rigatoni or Penne or your family’s favorite)
6 Cups Tomato Sauce
1 Clove Garlic chopped
2 Tbsp. Virgin Olive Oil
1 Tbsp. Salt
1 Tbsp. Pepper
2 Tbsp. Unsalted Butter
1 Cup Sun Dried Tomatoes
1/2 Cup Raisins
1 Cup Pitted/Sliced Kalamata Olives
1 Tbsp. Bouquet Garni (dried herbs)
(This can be made from scratch to include your favorite flavors)
1 Cup Pine Nuts
1 Cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
Preparation:
Cook pasta according to package directions (10-12 min.) Rinse with cool water and place in a large bowl.
In a large sauce pan, warm olive oil (a minute or so), add Sun Dried Tomatoes, chopped garlic and raisins. Let simmer on low for approx. 8 minutes or until soft.
In the same pot, add tomato sauce (6 cups), bouquet garni, salt, pepper, butter and chopped kalamata olives – cook on warm to medium heat for approx. 8 -10 min.
Blend Pasta with Sauce, sprinkle with Pine Nuts (Pignoli) and Grated Parmesan Cheese. Voila! A total of approximately 20 minutes and your dinner is ready to serve.
Serve with garlic bread, pre-made at any store. I make my own: baguettes, butter,minced garlic and parmesan or cheddar cheese – DELISH!
Happy dinnertime all. As always, I look forward to any and all comments/feedback. Thanks to those of you who have written, stay in touch.
~Jens~
