No-Cook Tomato Sauce for your College Pasta Dish Recipe
When you’re cooking at college or university there’s nothing easier than opening a jar of pasta sauce to put on your cooked pasta. The only thing you’ll miss out on is the satisfying feeling you get from making your own healthy version. This Fusilli Pasta with a No-Cook Tomato Sauce recipe is my attempt at bringing those two worlds together.
This idea for a no-cook sauce isn’t mine. I found it in the latest issue of Nutrition Action Healthletter. I thought it was absolutely brilliant! My only issue with the original recipe was it involved chopping fresh tomatoes. It also called for fresh basil, which I didn’t have. Since I wanted to make this as easy as using a jarred sauce I went with canned diced tomatoes and dried herbs instead. I was actually surprised how good it tasted!
One thing you should keep in mind when making the sauce is to use a small clove of garlic. I used a big honking one and the garlic was overpowering. The garlic flavor stuck with me for the rest of the day an unfortunately others had to endure the wrath of my breath.
In the end I’d say making this pasta sauce comes pretty close to being as easy as using a store bought sauce. It certainly tastes just as good (if not better) and you get those wonderful satisfying feelings that come with making your own…which is always a nice touch.
Song Pairing Suggestion: The song “Easy Skanking” by Bob Marley kept popping in my head because this pasta dish was so stupid easy to prepare. Got to tell ya, having Bob sing “Take it Easy” in your head while cooking is a pleasant experience.
Fusilli Pasta with a No-Cook Tomato Sauce
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 8 minutes (to cook pasta)
Total Time: 18 minutes
Instruments
- 1 can (28 oz) diced tomatoes
- 1 clove, minced garlic (use a small clove or the garlic will overpower the sauce)
- 8 oz fussili pasta (about 2 cups)
- Chopped fresh parsley to garnish (optional)
Lyrics
Open can of diced tomatoes. Drain and reserve ½ cup of liquid. In a blender, combine, reserved tomato juice, ½ cup diced tomatoes, oil, garlic, cheese, oregano, basil and pepper. Blend until smooth.