Nothing beats a bowl of hot pasta covered in a spicy or creamy sauce to quell the blues on a rainy day. You can bake it into a luscious casserole, toss it with your favourite vegetable or meat sauce, include it in a salad and even use up last night’s leftovers in a frittata the next morning! It’s loved by kids and grown-ups alike and welcomed at any mealtime.

You can buy good quality dried pasta in your local supermarket or prepare it from scratch if you’re a bit of a purist. Make sure you’re buying pasta made from 100 per cent durum wheat semolina, this gives you the best pasta. Buon appetite!

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="660"] Easy pasta with chicken dinner. Nutritious and delicious.[/caption]

Penne Arrabiata

3 tbs olive oil

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 onion, finely chopped

1 28-oz tin tomatoes

salt and freshly-ground black pepper to taste

1/3 cup chopped fresh basil

1/3 cup chopped parsley

1 400 gm package of dried penne pasta

1/2 hot pepper, seeded and chopped

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese

1/4 cup pitted black olives, not tinned, cut into quarters

Heat oil in a large sauté pan add garlic, onion and hot pepper, sauté until fragrant and onion is tender.

Puree tomatoes or break into small pieces with a fork. Add to onions in pot.

Add salt and black pepper, add half the fresh basil, simmer until sauce has become medium thick.

Meanwhile bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add 1/2 tsp salt and penne, boil until tender and firm about 10 to 12 minutes or according to manufacturer’s directions.

Meanwhile place half the tomato sauce into bowl, add drained pasta and toss, add the rest of the sauce and toss well.

Add basil, parsley and cheese and toss.

Sprinkle olives on top, adjust seasonings.

Serves 6 to 8

Pasta Norma

1 lb penne pasta

1 medium-sized eggplant

1 tsp salt

¼ cup olive oil (more if needed)

1 tbs chopped garlic

½ tsp pepper flakes

1 14-oz tin chopped tomatoes

1 tsp freshly-ground black pepper

sea salt to taste

Chopped fresh parsley, basil or tarragon

Freshly-grated Parmesan cheese

Boil pasta in plenty of salted water according to package directions. Slice eggplant into ½-inch thick slices and sprinkle salt over slices, leave for 15 minutes, rinse and pat dry.

Heat 2 tbs olive oil in a medium-sized saucepan, add garlic and pepper flakes, when garlic begins to turn golden add the tomatoes with the juice or sauce. Stir, cover and simmer for about 10 minutes stirring occasionally. Taste and adjust seasonings.

Now heat the balance of the olive oil in a frying pan, fry eggplant slices until golden brown in colour on both sides. Repeat until all the eggplant has been fried, do not drain on paper towels, simply remove to a plate.

Slice the eggplant into strips, add to warmed to