This is an original recipe for pasta with homemade sauce that is ready in about 20 minutes!
I threw these ingredients together on a whim and the end result was FANTASTIC.
The trick is to substitute, add, or get rid of ingredients according to your own taste. Be creative!
You’ll need a large pot- it serves 4-6 people.
Ingredients
- 1 lb. of pasta [I used whole wheat penne]
- 1 lb. of crabmeat [I used imitation crab- a mixture of cod, haddock, and crab- which flakes perfectly. Substitute your favorite seafood here.]
- 10 oz. of spinach, chopped [I used frozen]
- 2 cups of ricotta cheese
- 1 cup of sliced mushrooms [fresh or canned]
- 1 cup of onions, chopped
- 1/2 cup of tomatoes, chopped [I used canned]
- 1 cup of water
- 1/3 cup of oil [I used extra-virgin olive oil]
- 4 cloves of garlic, chopped
- 2 tbsp of dried basil
- salt to taste
- 1 tbsp of pepper
Directions
- If you use fresh crab, boil it in water with sea salt and remove the meat, setting it aside. [If using packaged crabmeat, skip this step].
- In a separate small pot, add 1/2 cup of water and spinach. Bring to a boil and then simmer for about 5 minutes. Strain and set aside.
- In a medium pot, heat the oil on medium heat and then add the garlic and onion. Sauté for about 3 minutes, taking care to avoid burning the garlic. Immediately add the mushrooms. Once the mushrooms “sweat”, add the crabmeat and stir, turning the heat down to medium-low.
- In a large pot, add a pinch of salt and bring to a rolling boil. Add the pasta and cook until al dente, per instructions.
- Add the tomatoes, ricotta cheese, 1/2 cup of water, and basil to the crabmeat sauce and simmer until cheese melts and becomes more of a liquid sauce.
- Strain the pasta, immediately returning it to the large pot. Stir in the crab sauce and spinach. Add salt to taste. Serve and enjoy!
**Note: If the ricotta cools, it becomes lumpy. Heat it thoroughly and serve warm.**
