Wednesday 10 June 2009

Back of the fridge pasta


Yesterday when I was catching up with posts on a few of my favourite blogs I spotted a pasta blogging event that Mangocheeks at Allotment2Kitchen was taking part in. So I followed the links and ended up at Presto Pasta Nights, which this week (PPN #117) is hosted by Katie at Thyme for Cooking. The concept is that you blog about a pasta dish (well anything that has pasta or noodles in actually) and as pasta is one of my favourite quick dishes I thought it might be fun to take part especially as I had pasta for lunch on Monday from a mixture of things lurking in the fridge.

As I work from home quite a lot I get to rustle up whatever I fancy each day from whatever I can see in the fridge. I don’t often buy things specifically to use for lunch but instead muddle through with whatever I can find from leftovers and store cupboard basics. Its fair to say our cupboards and fridge are fairly well stocked so it not often that I struggle to make something tasty, but I do tend to really on pasta, salads and open sandwiches a lot.

On Monday the fridge yielded:

  • some cooked garden peas and new potatoes leftover from dinner the night before
  • the remains of a bunch of asparagus that had got hidden behind something else so it wasn’t in top form any more but still edible
  • some fresh tarragon pesto that was dangerously near its use by date
  • the last of a chunk of parmesan

So I headed to the cupboard and dug out the current pasta shape (some De Cecce Tortiglioni) and cooked it as per the packet instructions. I steamed the asparagus above the pasta for about 7 minutes and then cut it into 2cm lengths. Once the pasta was done I drained it, put it back in the pan and stirred in a couple of spoonfuls of pesto, and tossed it with the asparagus, peas and potatoes (cut into 1cm dice). Into a bowl with a good grating of parmesan on the top and there was my lunch. Maybe 15 minutes from fridge to table – not bad.

Note: The fresh pesto was Purely Pesto. I’m going to be doing a producer review soon so watch out for that.

7 comments:

Shaheen said...

goodshoeday,

Back of the fridge and storecupboard ingredients can now and again create memorable dishes, and your submission looks healthy and tasty. All those greens, delicious.

PS Thanks for the shout, it is very much appreciated.

Karen said...

Looks good! I love to make pasta this way, too. Oh, soup too... whatever's in the fridge goes in the pot and comes out delicious!

Ruth said...

So glad you found Presto Pasta Nights. I do hope we see your terrific dishes often.

Unknown said...

Love the name back of the fridge pasta and love the Emma Bridgewater plate!

Katie Zeller said...

That always the best pasta - from whatever bits are on hand. And never the same twice.

franmouse39 said...

Mmmm - let's here it for leftovers.
Just given you an award...pop by to pick it up!

goodshoeday said...

Thanks for all the comments - glad to see everyone really loves making pasta dishes with leftovers - it can be a great way to make you think of something different.

Ruth: I'll be joining in PPN often I love pasta :)

Gourmet Chick: Emma Bridgewater stuff is so nice - its great to have a few pieces as special 'me' crockery (others use at their peril!)

Fran: thanks for the award - will pop by and collect next week. Trying to resist blogging too much on hols!!