Lara's Creamy Basil Pasta

 This has fast become her speciality. 

Ingredients: 

• 1 packet of pasta 
• 1 jar pesto 
• 2 pack chicken thighs 
• spring onions 
• parmesan (a fair bit) 
• fresh tomatoes (2 or 3) 
• fresh basil 

For six people: 

• Grill a couple of packs of chicken thighs, well seasoned. Cut into bit-sized pieces when done.
• Prep chop: fresh tomatoes, spring onions. 
• Cook pasta (Lara prefers spirals) 
• Mix all ingredients, plus a jar of pesto, a good shlurp of cream, some fresh basil, a good amount of grated parmesan. 

Serve. 

Veggie options for pasta night

• Veggie carbonara with cream, cheese, sweetcorn, mushrooms, tofu, beany stuff of your choice, nutmeg, etc. 

• Chinese noodle version with fine-chopped firm tofu with ketchap manis, fried onions garlic and ginger, five spice, soy sauce, sesame oil,  herbs of choice. 

Mediterranean Oodge-whack Pasta

Well what is one to call it. This was one of those fortuitous discoveries - we had a lot of grilled peppers and aubergine salad left over so we chucked it in with some pasta and feta. My goodness, tasty or what. Anyway, to recreate the experience...
make your 'salad' (and yes, this is a great salad in itself...) - roast slices of aubergine in the oven , slice. Grill all sorts of peppers until their skins blacken, let them cool and taken their skins off, slice. Mix these two up with chopped good quality  fresh tomatoes, a squidge or two or fresh garlic (I do ours through the garlic press), dress, and hopefully let it stand for a little while. You can add some basil if you want, but it's got plenty of flavour already.
If you haven't already eaten your delicious salad, then boil up some pasta, and combine the two - if you've got some feta or halloumi all the better. A dob extra of olive oil never goes amis, eh? Enjoy!