Easy pasta dinner for two

Pasta dinner for two, and two for pasta dinner, just me and you, and you for me...

No? Anyone?

Anywho, this recipe is way easy, and although not five-minutes quick, is about 30-minutes quick. Plus, you'll totally impress anyone who you serve this to, since you'll have made it all from scratch. Well, not the pasta. But I assume you knew that, since I labeled this recipe "Easy," and have mentioned the word "quick."


Recipe: Easy pasta dinner for two

Sauce:
-1 can diced tomatoes (drained)
-1 can tomato sauce
-1 can tomato paste
-2t garlic powder OR 2-3 cloves of garlic
-2t onion powder OR a diced small onion
-2t dried basil OR 5-10 chopped basil leaves
-1T dried parsley OR a couple of fresh parsley sprigs, chopped
-1t salt
-1t pepper
-1/2lb of hamburger meat if desired

Pasta:
-Enough spaghetti for the two of you (see tip on measuring below)

Salad:
-However you like to make a salad, really. Rip up half a head of romaine lettuce...buy a bag of salad mix...top with chopped veggies or not...dressing is good. Italian would be appropriate with this meal.

1. Put on a pot of boiling water for the pasta.

2. Cook the meat. If you're transforming the marinara sauce into meat sauce, cook up the hamburg now. I like to throw a few tablespoons of water into the pan to help the meat cook and stick to the pan a bit less. When the meat's nice and browned, rinse, drain, and set aside.

3. Combine sauce ingredients. Mix together all of the tomato things, spices, and meat in a saucepan. Cook over low-medium heat, stirring frequently.

4. Cook the pasta. When the water is boiling, add pasta. See instructions on the box for cooking time. Whole wheat pasta generally takes a few minutes longer than normal stuff. Either way, it should be about 7-12 minutes to cook two servings of spaghetti. When it's cooked the way you like it, drain and rinse. (Rinsing cleanses the pasta of extra starch...thus allowing you to leave the noodles sitting for awhile without turning into a wad of stuck-together mess. I highly recommend rinsing.)

Tip: Measuring spaghetti for two

Make a loop with your index finger and thumb by putting the tip of your index finger in the first joint of your thumb. Hold your hand near a plate or the countertop, and begin filling the loop with uncooked spaghetti. That's about two servings worth. Voila! (That's 'wa-la' for those of you who didn't know how to spell it.)

5. Serve. Combine spaghetti and sauce. If you want a salad, well, you better get that out too.

See? Wasn't that easy? And if you want some garlic bread, just spread some butter (or Brummel and Brown) on a few pieces, sprinkle with garlic salt, and microwave for a few seconds until the butter is all melty and delicious. Pour some wine, and you're good to go! If you don't have a corkscrew, or just want to laugh, watch these videos.