Garlic Pasta

Pasta! My weakness. It's one of my comfort foods, and an item I could eat anytime, really. I like it cold, I like it the next day, I like it with marinara sauce. I like it with alfredo sauce. It goes as a side with many a main dish, or can be a main on its own. When I was pregnant, it was all I craved (which isn't too abnormal for me). And while pregnant and in France last year, I sat in Paris eating a bowl of spaghetti. Don't judge me; I ate ample crepes and croissants, too.

This particular pasta recipe came from @boydbrown3, a chef on Instagram. These days, I spend more time collecting recipes than making them (read: I was pregnant last year = no longer pregnant now and my meal prep involves purees). It's the season of life I'm in, and adaptability is what keep the gang fed.

But this? This recipe was a breeze. And it sounded oh so good. I first cooked some spaghetti until al dente. In a large skillet, I heated avocado oil, then added a lot of garlic and cooked until fragrant. Yes, I used minced garlic. YES! It came in a jar. SHAME, I know. But read prior notes re: baby at home. Sometimes, you get a little nugget down for a nap and you're hangry. But would fresh garlic work better? You know it.

I then added the crushed red pepper and fresh parsley and cooked another minute.

Next, I added the cooked pasta and tossed it in the oil sauce. The last step was mixing in my grated parmesan.

That's it, my friends. Dinner is done.

This was stellar. A little bit of heat from the crushed red pepper, a lot of flavor from the parsley. A bit of chili oil would have kicked this up a notch (adding to notes for next time). But a quick, easy, and homemade dinner can be done in just a couple of minutes.

Garlic Pasta Recipe

Ingredients:

1 pound spaghetti (or pasta of choice, cook until al dente)

1/4 cup cooking oil (I used avocado oil but olive oil is great)

8 garlic cloves, minced (any chef would kill me, but yes, I used pre-minced garlic for rendition #1)

1 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1/2 cup fresh parsley, minced

1 cup grated parmesan

Instructions:

Cook pasta until al dente. In a large skillet, heat cooking oil. Add garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes, until fragrant. Add crushed red pepper and parsley. Cook for one more minute. Add cooked pasta and toss to coat. Stir in grated parmesan. Serve.