Thursday, November 24, 2011

disaster pasta

Pasta and I go way back. Way back into the world of an Aussie meat and three veg family. Even back then I was always asking for pasta. I was like the food black sheep of the family. I was intrigued by Italian cooking and longed to learn how to make it. Back then  Mum's meaty spaghetti bolognese or pasta with a cream of chicken soup sauce were the order of the day. And certainly dishes that I looked forward to. To this day Mum's spaghetti is pure comfort food.

As a teenager I began to experiment with torn out magazine recipes and soon built a small repertoire of pasta dishes. Not so long after I met Daniel ( I was 19 and he was just 17) I invited him over for a home cooked meal. Daniel is second generation Italian, which strangely didn't sink in until I was halfway through the bolognese sauce. Was I crazy cooking pasta for an Italian? I must have been, but there was no backing down at that stage. So nervously the pasta was served and I was relieved that he  did seem to like it.  To this day he says it was just like his Mum's bolognese sauce. They do the say the way to a man's heart is through his stomach.

So with time, I was introduced to many more traditional pasta dishes from my mother-in-law. But I don't use a recipe very often these days, preferring to go with what I have and flavouring with fresh herbs, sometime fried vegetables. Sometimes a bit of cream. Sometimes a handful of feta cheese.

Last week I had a disaster of a pasta dish. Though not entirely my fault, but almost. Daniel had accidentally added the fried mushrooms and garlic to the boiling pasta which resulted in most of the flavour being poured down the drain with the boiled water. He was only trying to help!

So as you can guess we had quite a lot of this pasta leftover. Not to be wasteful, the next night pasta bake was on the menu.


I simply added about 8 or so eggs with a cup of cream and a little sea salt


 Mixed into the pasta with a few handfuls of vegetables. I added grated carrot, purple carrot and corn


Topped with grated cheese


Baked at 200 degrees until golden on top.


Best eaten al fresco. Bad and sugary alcoholic beverage optional.


Are you a pasta person?

16 comments:

  1. i eat just about any pasta dish served up. this looks incredibly good. i spy a grater there that i like. :). enjoy your day. xo

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  2. I adore pasta dishes and this sounds wonderful. I love the idea of adding a few items and creating a whole new dish.
    xx

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  3. Oh yeah...I love pasta. Infact we had chicken fettucine last night. Hubby is not overly keen on pasta though...he's a meat and veg man through and through.
    One thing I have not done in a long time, like years and years, is make pasta and every time we have a pasta dish I kick myself for not trying.
    Like you Tania, I never use a recipe...most of my cooking is like that ;)

    x

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  4. I've made Pasta Quiche before! I also like the look of cityhippyfarmgirl's Pasta Frittata:

    http://cityhippyfarmgirl.com/2011/04/08/pasta-frittata-frugal-friday/

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  5. Total pasta person here. Spaghetti marinara, spinach and ricotta agnolotti, or simple a pesto pasta are some of my favourite meals. With herb bread of course. The best pasta I had in Italy was fuitti de mare (spelling?) or fruits of the sea. Drool....

    :)

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  6. Love the title of this post. Even though you made a masterpiece out of it in the end, I think this dish should always be known as 'disaster pasta'! In our house we enjoy 'brassica massacre' which is my variation on cauliflower cheese, with broccoli, often fennel bulb and other veggies thrown in there too, and baked to crispy goodness :-)

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  7. Great save on the pasta dish....don't you love when 'helping' goes wrong but still have to praise....bless em!
    I love pasta and it is always a good standby dish and one to use lots of veggies up!
    Jode x

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  8. Great save - it looks delicious!

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  9. Is the pope Catholic? I love pasta and I love fresh homemade pasta much more than I should. Tania, I really like your disaster pasta. Sometimes great meals come from leftover or recycled food. It looks good, with or without the wine. Well done!

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  10. Yummo pasta, i havent met a pasta dish I havent liked yet. I'm looking forward to making my own fresh pasta soon. x

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  11. My husband always jokes that he's worried i'm going to turn into pasta one day as i eat it so often!

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  12. Pasta and breads are my down fall as they run my sugar way up so I have to be careful in the amounts I eat but I still adore the stuff.

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  13. Dear Ivy:
    I am a Portuguese (hard) working mum. I have a 10th months girl(about the same age as yours?) and a 3y boy. I love to follow your blog, since it sounds to me like another live... staying home with the kids and playing traditional housewives. Sounds great!
    Please keep on feeding my alter ego.

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  14. Dear Ivy:
    I am a Portuguese (hard) working mum. I have a 10th months girl(about the same age as yours?) and a 3y boy. I love to follow your blog, since it sounds to me like another live... staying home with the kids and playing traditional housewives. Sounds great!
    Please keep on feeding my alter ego.

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  15. That pasta dish sounds delicious Tania. I think a it sounds like a great save and a new favourite. xo

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  16. Never thought of this but I love the idea and the waste not want not! xo m.

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