penne rigata in white sauce

penne rigata in white sauce
Originally uploaded by eraine.

ingredients:
pasta, spinach (fresh or frozen), milk, white wine, vanilla, olive oil, butter, garlic, basil, salt/pepper

directions:
1. cook pasta according to box directions (whole wheat penne rigate used here, 8 min.). water is salted to ocean-ness, a la alton brown
2. while water is boiling / pasta is cooking, crush and mince garlic (1-2 large cloves, 3-4 small ones)
3. pour several Tablespoons of olive oil into pan, and allow garlic to sit in the oil for a few minutes. a couple of teaspoons of basil (chopped, dried in my case) too. add some white wine (maybe 1:2 ratio of white wine to olive oil) and pinches of kosher salt
4. put oil on low heat until pasta is cooked. drain pasta.
6. add spinach (approx. 2-3 cups frozen in my case) to heating pan. pour in some milk (whole), a few Tablespoons and a wee bit of vanilla
7. then pour drained (not rinsed, so it's still hot) pasta over spinach
8. toss pasta in oil and spinach, adding a small amount (1/2 a pat) of butter for taste. add kosher salt and coarsely ground black pepper to taste as well.

served 2.

tasty possible future modifications:
toasted walnuts
sauteed mushrooms
slow-roasted tomatoes
asparagus (if alex is not too averse)