In need of some pasta?

I don't know about you but whenever I am anticipating an upcoming move I like to try and use up as many pantry items as possible. This has meant some dinners have consisted of tomato soup married with melty-cheesy english muffins. And thankfully I have a hubby that never complains, but more so encourages such a pantry cleansing. And while it is easy on this prego mom when dinners only involve a mere heat and serve....I still get in the mood to cook up something nice, and good, and tasty. (And have I mentioned that pasta seems to be my #1 craving still?) So here is what I was able to pull out of my pantry and fridge staples to satisfy not only my craving but our cleansing.

It's simple....and almost as easy as pulling out a box of soup.

I of course was inspired by a pin I had found on Pinterest from Whole Living.

The thing is, when you are cleaning out your cupboards you use what you have on hand....I didn't have orechiette pasta, but what I did have was some fettuccine. I also used up the rest of my Trader Joe's Parmesan and Romano sprinkling cheese (insert sad face....but happy face for the fact that soon we will live close to one again!) And of course I added extra shredded parmesan at the end, because lets face it, 2 tablespoons simply is not enough. And please... Puh-Lease do not forget the drizzling of olive oil right before serving....it adds a wonderful flavor and keeps the pasta from coming across as sticky and unappetizing. It definitely passed the Kyle test as he went back for seconds and then finished up the remaining noodles on my plate. Yup, I would say it was a success and will be made again in our house. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!


Broccoli with Fettuccine 
adapted from: Whole Living

• 8 ounces fettuccine
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 bunch (about 1 1/2 pounds) broccoli stalks, peeled and trimmed, stalks and florets, roughly chopped
• 1 teaspoon coarse salt
• 4 tablespoons (at least) freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese; more if preferred.
• Freshly ground pepper and more salt if needed 
• extra olive oil for drizzling

Directions

1. Bring a large stockpot of water to a boil. Add pasta, and cook until al dente, stirring occasionally to keep the pasta from sticking, about 8 minutes. Transfer to a colander to drain, reserving 1/2- 1 cup cooking liquid. Set pasta aside.
   
2. Heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic; saute until golden, stirring to avoid burning, about 2 minutes. Add broccoli and reserved cooking liquid; cook, stirring, until broccoli is tender and bright green, about 3 minutes. Add the salt, and season with pepper. Remove from heat.
   
3. Add reserved pasta to pan, and toss well to coat. Transfer to four serving bowls; drizzle each with 1/2 teaspoon olive oil, and garnish each serving with 1 1/2 teaspoons grated pecorino cheese.