Favorite pasta under budget

Well, that's odd. One would think with a name like experimental chef, how is it that you need suggestions?

Just about any vegetable will work with pasta. Shop for them in season. Compare prices of fresh produce to frozen produce. When fresh is cheaper, buy lots of it and freeze it. When frozen is cheaper, stock up your freezer. I do the same with fruit.

Did you know that you can freeze garlic and ginger? I buy lots of it when it is on sale, chop it up and put it in sandwich sized plastic bags formed into a long roll. As I need some garlic or ginger in my cooking, I just break off a chunk from the frozen roll and return the rest to the freezer. No more spoiled heads of garlic and ginger isn't such a chore to peel and use when I want it. You can do the same with bell peppers. Buy them on sale, slice them up, spread in a single layer on a tray and store in the freezer for 24 hours before packing them into plastic bags. You can do the same with berries, pineapple and a few other fruits.

What you can do is cook up a large batch of pasta until it is just slightly undercooked. Split it into portion sizes and store in containers in your refrigerator.

After you've cooked your veggies and warmed up your sauce, add the pasta to finish cooking it.

Another thing you can do to add some variety is try using some of your veggies as a sauce by pureeing them. Pureed butternut squash, some veggie or chicken broth and some toasted walnuts or pecans make a great pasta variety.

If you have leftovers, rather than eating them for several days until you get bored with it, pack them into serving sizes for the freezer. Those days when money is tight, you'll have a freezer full of great leftovers to choose from.

By the way, you need to make sure you are getting enough protein if you aren't eating meat due to budget restrictions. Dry beans and rice are very inexpensive. Learn to cook both and you'll have even more variety to your endless days of boring pasta.

Do you eat cheese? I've a good spinach and ricotta recipe (cottage cheese could be a substitute).

I've some recipes I love that I'll post, but tell me/us what you don't like first.
I make a pasta with broccoli, garlic, in olive oil with some added anchovies (fish, of course, so maybe out for that reason) mushed into the oil, and red pepper flakes. Chances are a lot of people would hate that and I like it, practically addictive.

There isn't much I don't like! I've been lucky enough to live in parts of the world where one must lower their typical restrictions to food.

I do eat cheese! I would love to see your ricotta recipe.

If there was something in a recipe I didn't like, I think I could figure out a sub for it though

I've never tried anchovies in pasta before. I'm intrigued! Is it overly salty?

I do prefer to keep my meats to a minimum, however.

Ok, we're similar (I'm on a wildly restricted budget, like to cook, and am an italophilic person, while I like other countries' foods too).

Glad you showed up at a2k, by the way.
We've gotten an immense number of newbies introducing themselves that are some kind of onslaught bots, so us usual posters are some what chary of hello announcements - in case you feel some chill in the air, that is what it is about, nothing personal.

Back in a bit.

Here's some for a start -


Here's the spinach ricotta recipe -
http://able2know.org/topic/11069-1

http://able2know.org/topic/81749-1

http://able2know.org/topic/96295-1

this sounds good, from BBB -
http://able2know.org/topic/99091-1

I found these quickly by putting in pasta to the search box - but I also sort of remember the threads. I'll be looking for more.

I've one I've my eye out for that involves lox, basil, ginger, and lime (my ex's idea), one of those concoctions that is nirvana or ugh..
lox being expensive but it doesn't take much.

Here's the lox and basil ginger and lime thread -
http://able2know.org/topic/10645-1

I can't immediately find whatever I said about broccoli and pasta - I tend to saute garlic in olive oil and some (not all that many, depends on the company and process) anchovies with some amount of red chile seeds. Scrunch up the anchovies. I now live in new mexico, chile seeds vary. Most packaged chile seed stuff, a tsp, but that's me. I'm still learning and there is a thread on that. Add the broccoli - and how cut up it is probably affects timing - and cook until it tastes good. Add and mix pasta.

Adds, I like marinated anchovies - not available here, or if they ever are, I don't trust them.

That's a famous sicilian recipe, and involves fresh sardines.

Where did you get the idea that eating some carbs are bad for you?

Yes, I agree. Carbs have gotten a bad name since that last fad diet phase around 2002-'04. Eaten in a balance diet carbs are good, complex carbs are even better.

Fad diets come and go. Glad that one is almost out of people's systems.

I haven't been near a good rare porterhouse steak in a long time but you never know, I might end up in some prison system facing this and that.

I like other food now, but I remember extremely liking a good steak.

I'm feeling some planning here.

I'm feeling some planning here, large bot?

Can't tell.

Let's go crazy.

I generally don't like sauce-y sauces with pasta unless I'm doing a pasta bake.

I do like a sort of modified veggie stir fry served on top of a small heap of pasta that's lightly dressed with olive oil, garlic, sea salt and pepper.

I'm a big fan of this style as well. Or just sauce-less pastas in general.

I remember the first time I was introduced to olive oil instead of sauce. It changed my world!

As for pasta bakes, I'm huge into lasagna!

Do you have anybody have any special indigence for an awesome Bechamel? I usually put in nutmeg, but I think that's a pretty standard affair.

That's pretty much what my broccoli pasta dish is, except that the olive oil, garlic, s & p is already in the sauteed broccoli.
I've done that with swiss chard or rapini too.

I'm a bechamel dummy.

Here's a pretty little recipe post from the Hazan family. It's ordinary too, but tells a bit about not worrying.

http://giulianohazan.com/blog/italian-bechamel-sauce/