In the bag

It's handled.

You got this.

It's in the bag.

No matter what life throws at you this week, I hope that you're able to say some version of one of those phrases. Even if it's for dinner.

Yes, you read that right: Dinner.

I don't know about you, but even working mostly from home evening meals can sneak up on me quickly. And with a household of hungry people to feed that meal better be found and made quickly, too.

So I'm going to share a 20 minute dinner (with 5-ish ingredients that can cost $10 total depending on the grocery store). Before I had kids, I tried out tons of pasta recipes and some were rather elaborate. I don't have time for those anymore but I decided I'd try to harness some of that specialness without all of the labor by throwing together a stripped down version of a few I could "sort of" remember.

I think you can modify this one a lot, too.

Here are the basics for my Lazy Pesto Pasta:

Ingredients:

• Box of spaghetti

• Jar of pesto

• Lemon (optional)

• Grated parmesan cheese

• Salt

Equipment:

• A pot

• A colander (optional)

• A spoon or two

• A knife

Directions:

1. Get salted water boiling in a large pot

2. Add spaghetti of your choice and cook according to package directions or your liking

3. Reserve about 1/3 cup of pasta water but drain the rest of the spaghetti

4. Put the spaghetti back in the pot

5. Mix in a tablespoon or two of your favorite pre-made pesto (or this Barilla one) with the spaghetti

6. Optional: half the lemon and squeeze the juice from one half into the spaghetti

7. Mix again

8. Add a little pasta water if it seems too dry, and mix

9. Scoop spaghetti onto plates or into bowls. Sprinkle with as much grated parmesan as you like

10. Eat it up quickly because you have things to take care of!

This recipe was originally shared in my newsletter as a "Monday hack." If you're interested in getting a preview of my blog and products, email me at meta@auntiemeta.com. I'll add you to the list!

Copyright: Auntie Meta, 2021