Two pasta dishes (Presto Pasta #118)

Dish number 1 - Pasta in cream sauce

One day, last week, dear princess was out with grandpa an entire day. He took her to the Science Centre in the morning, and to his house afterwards, and they spent a whole day together. How nice to let them have some bonding time. He took care of her meals, so all I had to do was cook dinner for hubby and myself. It was a chance to cook something that she doesn't like to eat, and that is pasta in cream sauce. It isn't my favourite as well, but hubby loves that, so decided to let him indulge.

My version is very simple. The ingredients are ham (any sort sliced up), capsicum, onion, garlic, fresh button mushrooms (sliced), Nestle cream, salt, Italian spices, black pepper, and pasta of course.

You can mostly find Nestle cream in a tin at the baking section of most supermarkets.

Method:

1. Boil pasta till al dente.
2. Fry onions till soft and slightly brown. Add garlic and fry till fragrant. Next, add button mushrooms & capsicum. When all is cooked, add ham and pasta. Pour in Nestle cream approximately half a tinful. Think it's around 125ml. You can add more as you go. Add some water to dilute it. Season with salt & spices to taste. You may like to garnish it with freshly shaved cheese, to give it more flavour. Or for those who love a spicier kick, chilli padi will be great!

Dish number 2 - Pasta in beef sauce

This is something that I cook very often for the family. It's such a staple and basic dish, I didn't see any need to share it. It's something that is cooked in most households. However, when Daphne said to 'share your everyday recipe', I thought, why not. I haven't been posting a lot lately and I have become lazy with my blogging. These days, I only share the bentos that I prepare for my princess, so I guess, it's time to go back to where I started... more about food.

All you need are minced beef (I used slightly over 200g for the 3 of us), tomato sauce (not ketchup haha), onions, garlic, button mushroom, shredded carrots (for added vegetables), salt, black pepper, Italian herbs, sugar, and penne. I do add in chopped tomatoes all the time, but didn't have them in the fridge today.

Method :
1. Boil pasta till al dente.
2. While pasta is cooking, brown onions, followed by garlic till fragrant, then minced beef. Once slightly cooked, add in mushroom, carrots and herbs.
3. After the above is cooked, add tomato sauce, salt, black pepper, and sugar to taste. I also added some water to dilute the tomato sauce. However, I am not fond of bolognaise sauce being too wet. I like it to be slightly thick as can be seen in the picture above.

With Daphne's encouragement, I've decided to participate in Presto Pasta Nights, founded by Ruth of Once Upon A Feast, I hope you'll find some comfort in these simple homecooked dishes. Enjoy!