Question about Penne Pasta Recipe?

I would either add more tomatoes (1 small can of crushed or 3 raw, seeded & chopped instead of 1) and would cut the cream cheese in half. Yes, you can use any pasta. The taste will not be different.

The best pasta dishes for me use fresh ingredients and lots of flavor. Here are two so-good and so-easy sauces:

Red Wine Marinara

2 T each olive oil & butter

4-5 cloves of garlic, smashed & chopped fine

1/2 small onion, chopped fine

2 t each basil, oregano, parsley, garlic powder, onion powder, sugar

1 t black pepper

2 cans crushed tomatoes (ok if with herbs in them) with juice

2 C decent red wine, left overs are fine

1 t lemon juice

Melt butter & oil in saute pan. Saute garlic & onion until just translucent. Add tomatoes, boil at high for 5 minutes then add herbs and spices. Stir in well and reduce to simmer. Add wine and simmer for additional 45 minutes, stirring down sides of pot frequently. Sauce is ready when it heavily coats the back of a spoon.

Creamy Butter Garlic Sauce

1 T olive oil

2 T butter, plus 2 T butter reserved

4 cloves garlic, smashed and chopped fine

1 T garlic powder, onion powder, parsley, chives

1/4 C white wine (or chicken stock)

1/4 C half n half (can use fat free)

Melt olive oil and butter in saute pan on high heat. Saute garlic until just translucent. Add white wine or stock to deglaze pan. Reduce heat to med-low and add spices, simmer and stir constantly. Drizzle in dairy when butter sauce is just thickening, do NOT stop stirring. Remove from heat and stir to incorporate. Add cooked pasta to the pan and toss to coat. Serve with a sprinkle of fresh herb (basil, oregano, scallions, thyme - whatever you have), fresh cracked pepper, and parmesan. Superb when topped with grilled shrimp, scallops, or salmon.

I think it will be okay. Just save about 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water before draining the pasta. If the dish seems to dry after combining the pasta with the sauce add some of the pasta water a little at a time to moisten it. The recipe has a lot of herbs but they won't be so strong since they are cooked with the sauce.

Rigatoni is a larger pasta than penne so the dish may not be as saucy if you substitute it for penne.

A few of my favorites . . .

Re: the penne/rigatoni question, I wouldn't worry. Rigatoni is, roughly speaking, just a slightly larger version of penne. The taste should be equally scrumptious!

Should you feel guilty about the creaminess, cheesiness and calory-packed nature of that particular recipe, I recommend a typically Ligurian pesto (or rigatoni) dish with fresh pesto, potato chunks and green beans. It's very moreish indeed.

The full recipe page is below.... hope that provides some thought!

Sounds pretty good, but the cream cheese will make it really thick (and fattening!) and rich. I would personally cut the cream cheese in half, but that's my own personal preference.

Yes, you can use Rigatoni. It is very similar in shape and size to Penne pasta. It will taste exactly the same!

Hmm don't know, the cream cheese in the sauce sounds nice but i don't know about all the herbs that might be abit overpowering (well that's just my personal opinion).

And no using a different type of pasta won't effect the taste at all.

Here's a yummy simple recipe I picked up off the net and am going to try myself this weekend:

Ingredients (serves 4)

450g dried fettuccine pasta

1 tablespoon olive oil

650g chicken tenderloins, tendons removed

125g rindless bacon, diced

1 brown onion, diced

300g small cup mushrooms, sliced

420g can Heinz Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup

1/2 cup light thickened cream

1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce

1/2 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped

Method

Cook pasta in a large saucepan of boiling, salted water, following packet directions, until tender. Drain pasta, reserving 2 tablespoons cooking water. Return pasta and water to the saucepan.

Heat 2 teaspoons of oil in a large, non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat. Add half the chicken. Cook for 4 minutes on each side or until golden. Remove to a plate. Cover to keep warm. Repeat with remaining chicken, adding more oil if necessary. Cut chicken tenderloins diagonally into 3 pieces.

Add bacon to frying pan. Cook for 2 minutes. Add onion and mushrooms. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 4 to 5 minutes or until mushrooms are golden. Add soup, cream and worcestershire sauce. Stir until well combined. Add mushroom mixture, chicken and parsley to pasta. Toss to combine. Season with cracked black pepper. Serve

You should ask me at school. lol! My mummy makes the best pasta (: