Pasta with Fresh Tomato Basil Sauce

If you're like us, you love to cook but don't want to spend any more time in the kitchen than necessary. Pasta is an easy foundation for a dish and allows for lots of experimentation. Plus, you can keep most ingredients stocked in your pantry and grab them in a pinch, supplementing with whatever fresh ingredients you have on hand.

Today's recipe comes from Cooking Light and definitely delivers on quickness. It's the Pasta with Fresh Tomato Basil Sauce (September 2010), and it's a good introduction to extending your reach beyond dried noodles and canned sauce.

There are just three steps to this recipe: 1) cook and drain the noodles, 2) sautee the firm produce, and 3) remove from heat and incorporate spices, delicate ingredients, and cooked noodles. Keeping those steps in mind will allow you to modify this recipe with whatever you have on-hand.

Zucchini languishing in the fridge? Cut it into ribbons and toss it in with the tomatoes. Last night's recipe left behind some extra oregano or thyme? Throw it in! Even frozen vegetables can make a splashy addition - just let your imagination and your taste buds be your guide.

The Cooking Light recipe itself isn't particularly mind-blowing. In truth, it lacks any sort of spirit or flavor. But as a sort of "training wheels" for cooking technique, it's a confidence-building dish worth making once.