Seriously Simple Spaghetti

I’m a meat and vegetables kind of girl. Give me meat and greens any day of the week. But sometimes you just want pasta-- delicious, carbohydrate-laden, starchy, saucy pasta. Pasta is probably the easiest meal to make (and the most comforting). Boil your noodles, dump your jarred sauce over them, devour. And there are so many kinds of sauce! Cheesy, creamy, tomato, pesto… but I have yet to find one jarred sauce that I actually enjoy eating, probably because I’m kind of a snob when it comes to food. This Hudgins tries to eat as fresh as possible, always. So for a while, I made all of my sauces from scratch.

And then I started working full time third shift, in addition to my other part time job.

Now Josh and I are lucky to eat at home two or three nights a week. He can’t cook, and I’m too tired to stir a pot. I say “can’t”, but it’s more like he’s never actually tried anything other than pizza, sausage and potatoes, or Velveeta. Thankfully we live in a place that is surrounded by tasty restaurants that don’t break the bank. Still, eating out always makes us feel like crap, even when the food we consume is relatively healthy. Anyway, on the rare occasion that I do cook, I try to make meals that don’t require much, if any, prep time.

So now THIS spaghetti has become a go-to meal at home. It’s cheap. It’s fast. It’s filling. I don’t have time to make my own tomato-based sauces (creamy ones take less time, but still require more effort than I’m willing to put out), but I think I’ve perfected the not-jarred-but-not-quite-fresh-either sauce. 

You can make this in about 15 minutes from stuff you probably already keep in your pantry, and if not, it'll cost less that ten dollars to feed 3-4 people.

HOLD UP. Did that say cinnamon? Yep. Don’t question it. 

The secret’s in the spices.

Now then, you need to decide how much post-pasta cleaning you want (or want your husband) to do. You can either use one pot or two (one for noodles and one for sauce, or one for both). I typically use two (3-qt. saucepan and a Dutch oven), because I can cook the sauce and the noodles at the same time. 

Boil some salted water in the saucepan and throw in enough noodles for you and your family. Keep an eye on the pot, but move on to the sauce.

Drizzle in enough olive oil to coat the bottom of the Dutch oven. Begin browning your beef, but don’t overcook it. Also, DO NOT DRAIN THAT MEAT. Ever wonder why low-fat food tastes disgusting? That fat is flavor. KEEP IT IN THE SAUCE.

While the meat still has some red in it, add your spices. I know that you’re skeptical about the cinnamon, but trust me, it works. Sprinkle in half a teaspoon of that magical tree dust, a tablespoon of garlic, and whatever amount of the Italian herbs you prefer. The red chili flakes are optional. If you don’t want this pasta to taste good, that is.

I don't actually measure my spices, so you may want a little more or less of each of those. Just don't forget the salt and pepper!

Just before the meat is all browned up, dump in the can of diced tomatoes and the majority of the tomato paste. Stir and let it simmer so it’ll thicken up. Adjust for seasoning.

The noodles should be almost done. That means they are not mushy. This is not a pasta by Nicholas Sparks. NO MUSHINESS ALLOWED. Now drain those almost-done noodles, but do NOT rinse. The remaining starch will help the sauce stick.

Shake off as much water as you can and dump the noodles into the sauce. Coat the noodles in that meaty goodness and let it sit for a few minutes to absorb the flavors.

Look at the clock. That took less than twenty minutes? Good. Now eat! 

PS: If you have never tried “zoodles” (zucchini noodles), you are missing out. Get yourself a Spiralizer (check Amazon) and substitute zucchini for the pasta when you’re craving something delicious and nutritious! Spiralizers work on a million other veggies, too. 

This is not a set-in-stone kind of recipe. When I have time, I use fresh crushed tomatoes and I add chunks of zucchini, green bell peppers, carrots, onion... But when you're short on time, energy, and money, canned can be good too.