I just made a really yummy and simple dinner!! Penne pasta in a fresh tomato basil sauce topped with sauteed mushrooms and green onions. Very simple to make, very delicious to eat!

Here’s how simple it is…

I started with a pound of mini penne pasta in boiling water with a bit of salt, saving a cup of the water before draining the pasta. The salt and starch from the pasta helps make the sauce nice and thick.

For the sauce, I started with a bit of butter and olive oil, cooked a chopped tomato until it  softened. Then I added a canned tomato sauce and the pasta water. As the sauce simmered, I added about a tablespoon of fresh chopped basil leaves, salt and pepper to taste, a pinch of dried cilantro, thyme and cumin. About ten minutes in, I added about a teaspoon of cream cheese to make the sauce creamy.

Then I brought the pasta and the sauce together and let it cook on low heat.

In a small sauce pan, I put a really small piece of butter to saute about six decently sized mushrooms, chopped in nice slices. As the mushrooms shrank, I added one chopped green onion. Then added salt, pepper and cumin to taste.

Served my pasta, topped it with the mushrooms and ate to my heart’s delight!