Pasta is a quick and simple dish that feeds a crowd and pleases the masses. Check out these quick and easy pasta dishes next time you need a little inspiration.
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Pasta is probably by far and away, one of my family’s favorite dinners. Seriously, like buttered noodles with parmesan makes them happy. I don’t really have to do much to pasta to make them happy. In fact, a couple of them are still in the stage where they just want me to leave it alone.
I typically stock up on jumbo packages of Costco’s organic noodles. At about $1/pound, they are a great way for me to feed my family something quick and easy that they absolutely love.
In fact, I made pasta for my husband on our first official “date”. I stood there in my college apartment kitchen, yacking away at the stove, when I watched his jaw drop and eyes bug out.
I was making spaghetti, and like my mother before me, I broke the noodles in half before I dropped them in the pot.
While he never paid this price, these are the noodles FishPapa bought as a bachelor. Ha! He was used to eating 2-foot spaghetti while I had broken mine down to 4-inch bits.
He married me anyway. After we had a big discussion about how pasta is properly cooked. He’d be thrilled if I could find those noodles at a better price. 😉
Recommended Recipes
Suffice it to say, I’ve been making pasta for the Fishers for a long time. Here are some of our favorite pasta recipes that come together quick and easy:pasta
Pasta: it’s a beautiful thing. It’s cheap. It’s quick to make. And there’s a way to dress it up to suit almost anyone and everyone. It definitely ranks near the top of our list of favorite quick dinner ideas.
Tell us what you think!
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Sue
In my world, it’s hand over the pesto and no one will get hurt. 🙂 The only thing it doesn’t make better is dessert.
Jessica Fisher
Ha! Good to know. I love the one at Costco, so cheap and good.
Vanessa B
Several of my family’s favorite pasta meals are associated with fond loving memories.
For our first Valentine’s Day I made seafood pasta for my husband and I. We had been dating about 6 months, we didn’t have much money and a date night was out of the question. I remember that dinner costing me about $12 which included shrimp and scallops 13 years ago. My husband was thrilled and this meal has become our Valentine’s Day tradition. Even if we have date night funds, we still opt for this meal. There have been many variations over the years depending on the budget.
Pasta Vodka is the other special family meal. Simple pasta and red sauce gets a fancy makeover when you add vodka, prosciutto and heavy cream. Yum! Several people in my family ask for this on their birthday.
Jessica Fisher
Isn’t it funny how pasta is linked to memories! We have some special ones — more than I could fit in the post!
Stephanie M.
We love pasta too and the many ways to make it. It would be impossible for me to decide which is my favorite. Of course pasta with any kind of red sauce, i.e. meatsauce, marinara, with meatballs and sausage, etc. will always be at the top of my list. But there are so many other ways that we enjoy pasta and one of them is called Chicken Tetrazzini.
7 oz. uncooked spaghetti
8 oz. fresh mushrooms, sliced, ( 1 1/2 cups)
1/4 cup butter
3 TBS. flour
2 cups chicken broth
3/4 cup half and half
Chopped parsley
Salt and Pepper to taste
3 cups cubed cooked chicken
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
Cook spaghetti till al dente. Drain and set aside.
Heat oven to 350. In a large soup pot type of pot over medium heat, sautee mushrooms in butter until tender. Reduce heat. Stir in flour. Cook 1 minute until smooth and bubbly, stirring constantly. Gradually stir in chicken broth. Cook over medium heat until mixture boils and slightly thickens, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; stir in half and half, parsley, salt and pepper. Add chicken and cooked spaghetti; toss with sauce. Pour into an ungreased 13×9 inch baking dish. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Bake at 350 for 30 to 35 minutes or until heated through.
To make this extra quick, purchase one of those rotissieri chickens in the store.
Betsy
This sounds perfect this weekend. It’s suppose to be cool with a chance of rain here in NW MO so I think this will be a nice dish to warm up to. I might be able to get my husband to hang our outdoor Christmas lights before it gets too cold and nasty if I have this in the oven. Thanks for the recipe.
Jessica Fisher
Sounds delicious!