Tomato Creamy Pasta

Recipe

• 1 cup dried Penne pasta (doubles up upon cooking)
• 1/2 cup mushrooms – slit into halves
• 1/4 cup corn kernels
• 1/4 cup french beans – cut lengthwise
• 1/4 cup green bell peppers – cut lengthwise, thin strips

Tomato Creamy Sauce

• 1/2 cup 3 cheese mix (mozarella, parmesan, cheddar – i took less fat % varieties of all)– shredded
• 1/2 cup milk (i used 1% fat content milk)
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste /4 tablespoons tomato ketchup (tomato paste is a thick, heat reduced/concentrated form for tomato puree – tasting much richer)
• 1/2 tsp sriracha sauce / hot sauce
• 1 tsp butter
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic – finely chopped
• 1/2 tsp fresh oregano (optional) – chopped
• 1/4 tsp grounded pepper
• 1/2 tsp salt or to taste
• 1/4 tsp paprika/ chipotle (i used chipotle for it’s intense smoky flavour)

Method

1. Boil the penne as per instructions on the package. Add 1 tsp of salt while boiling the pasta. Once done, drain the excess water and add a tsp of oil in the cooked penne. Mix well and keep aside. Oil keeps the penne from sticking to each other.
2. Preparing the vegetables – Take a pan. Add in 1 tsp oil and put to medium high flame. Add in the mushrooms, french beans, corn kernels and bell peppers, fresh oregano and salt. Saute till the french beans are al’ dente. Remove and keep aside.Now, depending on your choice you may cook the french beans further till tender. you could also pre-cook/steam/microwave the beans separately before adding to the pan.
3. Preparing the tomato creamy sauce – In a separate pan, take butter and oil. Put the flame at medium high and let the butter melt. Now, add in chopped garlic and toss it. Let the garlic roast to a light golden color.
4. Now, add in the milk and the cheese mix. Mix well till the cheese melts and creates a homogenous mixture. Now add in the salt, pepper and paprika/chipotle. Let it cook till the mixture starts to slightly boil. Keep stirring in between to prevent the cheese sauce from sticking to the base.
5. Once the mixture comes to a slight boil, add in the tomato paste and sriracha sauce. Mix in well till the tomato paste mixes in well with the creamy sauce base. Cover with a lid and let it simmer for 5 minutes.
6. Now, add the boiled pasta in the tomato creamy sauce and mix well. Toss in the vegetables and mix gently. Tomato creamy pasta is ready.
7. To serve, add the prepared pasta in the serving bowl and garnish with paprika flakes and sprinkle some fresh grounded pepper. You may add in some shredded cheese if you like to notch up the rich factor of the pasta, it never hurts to make a pasta more cheesy 😛