House Girlfriend

« Older Newer »
House Girlfriend Cooking Recipes Baked Penne 3 months ago

Comfort Food: Baked Penne (Yes, it’s a thing!)

A lot of my so-called meal planning is inspired by what I see on sale at the grocery store. Barely bruised artichokes marked down to half price? Yes, please! Three pounds of a bean I’ve never heard of for only $1.29? Certainly, sir! Bargain bin peaches? Don’t mind if I do. So naturally, when I found a mountain of neglected fiber-fortified penne on the clearance rack last week, I jumped at the chance. 

But I hadn’t a clue what to make with it, and I feared that the sheer fiber-fortifiedness of it would make it a wee bit inedible. I had to turn to the internets for inspiration, for a recipe that would mask the cheapness of the main ingredient. And I found just such a recipe on All Recipes, Baked Penne with Italian Sausage.

I loooove cooking with Italian Sausage, it has such robust and exciting flavor, and yet it never overpowers, only compliments; I knew this was the recipe for me.

image

I made a few changes, of course: I don’t like to cook with alcohol, if I can help it, and I like to avoid processed foods when I can. (Ridiculous, I know, when cooking with pasta that can keep on a shelf for years, but welcome to my brain.) 

I substituted simple tap water for wine, and chose instead of jarred tomato sauce to simply use a larger can of peeled whole tomatoes. And fresh garlic instead of canned. And lots of additional basil and oregano. And… you get the picture.

It was delicious- and full of fiber, too!

image

We’ve been snacking on it for days now, and the flavors only get better. Who knew Baked Penne was even a thing? Goodbye, Baked Ziti. I may never eat you again… unless I find ziti for sale in the pasta aisle, that is. 

(Source: allrecipes.com)

  1. housegirlfriend posted this

About the House Girlfriend

A MODERN GIRL'S (ATTEMPTED) GUIDE TO HOUSEKEEPING...

That's what I need. A guide. I used to have a job (a career even!) but more often than not, I now find myself in pajamas well past the acceptable time to be found in pajamas, pondering ice cream for breakfast and which version of Pride and Prejudice to waste my afternoon on. I've worked almost every day since I was sixteen... until now. And I don't quite know what to do with myself.

I purposely never learned to clean because I never wanted to have to. I purposely never learned to cook because the idea of winning over a man through his stomach seemed archaic and insulting. I purposely never learned to garden because I’d hate to ruin my manicure- if I ever actually got one.

But here I am. Nothing to do but pull my weight around our apartment, i.e. cook, clean, and generally keep house for The Boyfriend, who lovingly doesn't seem to mind if I never go back to work again.

And when I can get out of my pajamas at a reasonable hour, I find I don't hate it, this housekeeping thing. In fact, I might love it, being a House Girlfriend- and maybe I'll write that guide myself. If only I could get up the courage to scrub out the bathtub...