Everything but the kitchen sink pasta

When I was little (and to be honest now) I hated spaghetti sauce, and so ate my pasta with simply butter. Now, my palette has matured, not a whole lot truth be told, and so I’ve decided to introduce you to ‘Whatever is in the fridge pasta’. Which is, simply put, what I eat four nights a week.The noodle
I prefer a penne or rigatoni, because macaroni is too tiny and I still have yet to learn how to properly measure. Obviously you can substitute for any kind of damn noodle you want. Except lasagna noodles might be awkward. Anyways, if you have penne measure out how much you want in the bowl you’re going to be eating it in and throw it in some water and turn on to boil. Yes, that’s right, put in water and then boil because that saves energy according to the NYT despite being thought weird by my friends.

The veggies
I prefer mushrooms and some tomatoes. I generally sauté those in olive oil while the pasta is cooking, adding in spices. Other great things? Corn (we keep some frozen in the freezer), spinach (though I prefer it raw added in at the end), garlic, onion, or basically whatever is in your fridge.

The spices
Pasta is traditionally Italian, and so generally my top five spices are basil, oregano, marjoram, rosemary, and thyme. All this is a healthier alternative to salt, which I say you avoid in this dish.

The cheese
Once your noodles are boiled, and your veggies and spices ready, toss them in a bowl. Then put on top some shredded cheese (mozzarella is my favorite, but parmesan or other white cheeses work equally well) and mix it in so it melts throughout the pasta and not just at the bottom.

Interchange and eat at will, much more exciting than plain old spaghetti sauce. And considering how cheap pasta is and that most of the ingredients are in your fridge you save money too. Not to mention it takes almost no time.