Skillet Pasta Toss

I love this recipe because the dirty dishes amounts to 1 skillet, 1 spoon, 1 knife, 1 cutting board and what ever tool I use to drain the grease from the meat.  (Usually is a strainer with fine mesh)  Everything is cooked in one dish.  I use a deep skillet, but if you were making a double batch you would probably want to use a larger pot.

Gather Your Ingredients:

• 1lb ground beef (you could also use pork, chicken or turkey)
• 1 small onion
• 5 cloves of garlic
• about 1/2 cup diced veggies of your choice (my suggestions are carrots, zucchini, bell pepper)
• 2 c. tomato sauce
• 2 c. water
• 1 cup pasta (I used ditalini, but other good options would be elbow macaroni, medium egg noodles, broken pieces of lasagna, spaghetti or fettuccine)
• a handful each of chopped basil and parsley
• a generous handful of roughly chopped fresh spinach
• mozzarella and parmesan cheese to top

Make It:

1. Brown your meat, drain the grease and return to skillet.  Toss in your onion, garlic and veggies.  Saute until tender.
2. Stir in tomato sauce and water.  Bring to a boil, stir in pasta and reduce to simmer.  Simmer covered for about 10 to 15 minutes or until pasta is tender.  Stir occasionally.
3. Remove cover and add the spinach, parsley and basil.  Stir and remove from heat.
4. Top with shredded cheeses and replace lid.  Allow to sit until cheese is melted.

**If the sauce is a little bit too "runny" simmer with the lid off for a couple of minutes to allow water to evaporate.**

This is a great recipe to use up fresh veggies that are getting close to their shelf life.  I also love the richness that the pasta gets from cooking in the tomato sauce.