This is dinner on day 2 and 5 of Meal Plan 9

Pasta & Tomato Sauce

serves 2
60g cheddar, grated,Asda 350g/£1.55, 27p
100g onion, Asda 1kg/59p, 6p
300g tinned tomatoes – NB, not a whole tin, 23p
150g value pasta, 500g/29p, 9p
20g veg oil, Asda litre/89p, 2p
Total cost 67p, 33p a portion

per portion – 506 cals, 19g protein, 21g fat, 59g carbs

Peel and chop the onion, saute in the oil until transparent.  Add some garlic if you have it and cook for a minute or two.  Add the 3/4 tin of  tomatoes and  simmer gently for about 10 minutes. Whizz the sauce if you like it smooth, or leave it more chunky if you prefer. Season with salt and pepper.  Add some fresh basil leaves if you have any, at the last minute, don’t cook them.

While the sauce is simmering, cook the pasta in the usual way. Drain the pasta, tip back into the pan. Tip the sauce into the pasta pan, retaining a little sauce. Stir it all together to coat the pasta in the sauce. Divide the sauced pasta between 2 warm plates/bowls, top with the retained sauce and the cheese

The remaining 100g of tomatoes are allocated elsewhere if you are following meal plan 9 in total. If you are not, just use the whole tin.

This is a quick and easy store cupboard recipe that can be used as a base recipe for many different things. Add a tblsp of any fresh herb that you like. Basil is of course the most usual, but if you want to use rosemary, thyme, oregano or marjoram, completely your choice. Use half as much of a dried herb, or mix.

Use parmesan or grana padano on top if you have any instead of the cheddar. Or omit the cheese and use some toasted pine nuts, or toasted hazelnuts would be nice. Or you could use some chopped value salted peanuts or cashews.

You could add some chopped meat, chicken or beef, for a change, or tofu or paneer. Add some mushrooms, or a handful of spinach, or some grated root veg, or whatever veg you have that needs using. So maybe that half a tin of sweetcorn and a bit of lettuce getting old, or chopped radish and grated parsnip, or grated carrot and a  handful of peas.

Simmered down a  little more, you can use this as a pizza base, or over a plate of steamed veg, or with rice. Or tip it over your pasta, with or without any extra veg,  and put it in an oven proof dish and bake it in the oven for a pasta bake. A tin of value tuna stirred through before baking is extra nice.

I think this sauce is much nicer than the bought ones, and nearly as quick.