Fettuccine Alfredo

A classic! You can use store-bought sauce or make your own. Homemade usually tastes better, but is usually significantly more expansive than store-bought. This recipe provides instructions for both. 

Ingredients

• 1 pound of pasta (fettuccine is preferred, but any pasta you have will work.)
• 1 chicken breast (optional)
• Chicken seasoning to taste (optional)
• Olive oil
• 1 onion
• 3-4 cloves garlic
• 1 jar of alfredo sauce (store-bought or homemade)
  • 1 stick of butter
  • 1 cup of heavy cream
  • 1 ½ cups of freshly grated parmesan cheese
  • Oregano
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Steps

1. Begin boiling water in a large pot.
2. While waiting for the water to boil, cut your chicken into cubes and season with your preferred seasoning. I like Bolner’s seasoning. 
3. Dice the onion and mince the garlic.
4. Put a saute pan over medium-high heat with about a tablespoon of olive oil, just enough to cover the bottom of the pan, and put in the chicken and onions. Cook thoroughly, around seven to eight minutes. When they’re almost done, add in the garlic.
5. Once the water is boiling, heavily salt the water and add in the dry pasta.
6. Once the pasta is cooked, drain and reserve about a cup of the water if you are making your sauce. If you are using store-bought, add in your sauce and go to step seven.
7. Put all of the sauce ingredients and about one-fourth cup of the pasta water into the pot with pasta and stir quickly. Add more pasta water as needed if the sauce is too thick.
8. Add in your chicken and combine.
9. Serve.

Carbonara

This one is a little more effort than normal, but totally worth it in my opinion. It takes practice, but in my opinion this a perfect low-cost high-reward recipe. 

Ingredients

• 1 lb spaghetti
• 4 eggs (2 whole eggs and 2 yolks)
• 1 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
• ½ pound pancetta or bacon
• Salt and pepper
• Olive oil
• 2-3 cloves garlic (optional)
• Red pepper flakes (optional)

Steps

1. Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil on high heat. Once it boils, salt the water and cook spaghetti according to the package instructions.
2. While you are waiting, dice the pancetta/bacon. Mince a few cloves of garlic if you are using it.
3. Put around a tablespoon of olive oil into a skillet and saute the pancetta/bacon on medium heat until crispy. Add in the minced garlic and red pepper flakes if you are using them. Drain any excess oil/fat.
4. In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs and yolks, parmesan, and salt and pepper together until thoroughly combined. Reserve a small amount of the parmesan cheese to top the pasta before serving.
5. Once the pasta is cooked, strain, reserving a cup of pasta water, and add the pasta back into the pot. Stir in the bacon. Let the mixture sit off heat for a minute or two. The key to making carbonara successfully is having the pasta at the right temperature when you add the egg cheese mixture. You want it to be hot enough to cook the eggs into a creamy sauce, but not so hot that it scrambles them. This takes time to master, and you will most likely have to make carbonara in the same pot/on the same stove a few times before you have the timing right. 
6. Add in the egg and cheese mixture and stir quickly until combined. Add in the pasta water in ¼ cup increments if the pasta is too dry and/or the sauce isn’t creamy enough.
7. Serve immediately topped with the remaining parmesan cheese and pepper.

Penne alla Vodka 

This is another classic that has surged in recent years (Gigi Hadid’s pasta, anyone?). If you don’t have vodka, you can easily substitute with white wine vinegar or even just pasta water. 

Ingredients

• 1 lb penne
• 1 onion
• 5-6 cloves garlic
• 6 oz can of tomato paste
• ¾ cup heavy cream
• ¾ cup white wine vinegar
• ¼ cup parmesan cheese
• Red pepper
• Oregano
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper

Steps

1. Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil on high heat. Once it boils, cook penne according to the package instructions.
2. While you are waiting for the water to boil, dice up the onion and mince the garlic. Add in about a tablespoon of olive oil to a large skillet or pot and saute the onion over medium-high heat. Add in a few shakes of red pepper flakes and oregano. After a around 2 minutes, add in the garlic. Cook until the onion is translucent, a few more minutes.
3. Add in the white wine vinegar (or vodka, if you are using pasta water, add it in the next step) and let simmer for another 2-3 minutes.
4. Add in about ¾ of the can of tomato pasta and let simmer for several minutes. 
5. Reduce to low heat and add in the heavy cream and let cook for another minute. Then, stir in the penne and half of the parmesan cheese.
6. Serve topped with the remaining parmesan.

Midnight Pasta (Aglio E Olio)

This is a super simple recipe that’s also low-cost. I like to think of it as grown-up butter noodles. The sauce is traditionally paired with spaghetti, but it’s also super delicious with ravioli.

Ingredients

• 1 lb spaghetti
• 1 onion
• 6-8 cloves of garlic
• Olive oil
• Butter
• Salt and pepper
• Oregano
• Red pepper flakes
• Grated parmesan (optional)

Steps

1. Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil on high heat. Once it boils, cook spaghetti according to the package instructions.
2. While you are waiting for the water to boil, dice up the onion and mince the garlic. I love garlic so I usually use a whole head.
3. Strain the spaghetti once it’s cooked, reserve about ¼ cup of the water, and leave the spaghetti aside in the strainer so you can use the pot.
4. Pour about a tablespoon of olive oil into the pot and begin sauteing the onion on medium-high heat. Once the onion is about ¾ of the way cooked, almost translucent, add in the garlic and heavy shakes of oregano, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Cook for a few more minutes, until the onion is translucent and golden. 
5. Put the spaghetti back in the pot along with about a ½ tablespoon of unsalted butter and about a tablespoon of the pasta water. Stir quickly for about 2 minutes.
6. If the spaghetti seems too dry, you can add more olive oil and stir again.
7. Serve topped with parmesan cheese.

Spaghetti 

To be honest, I’m not a huge fan of spaghetti. I think there are so many other pasta sauces that are way better, but, it is a basic you should learn how to make. 

Ingredients

• 1 lb spaghetti
• 1 onion
• 3-4 cloves garlic
• Olive oil
• 1 lb ground beef (I often substitute spicy sausage)
• 6 oz can tomato paste
• 28 oz can diced tomatoes
• 16 oz jar tomato sauce
• Oregano
• Basil
• Salt and pepper
• Parmesan cheese

Steps

1. Dice up the onion and mince the garlic.
2. Put a tablespoon of olive oil into a large skillet or pot and add in the ground beef, onion, and garlic. Add in about 2 teaspoons of oregano and basil. Cook until the meat is browned, about 5-7 minutes. Drain any excess grease.
3. Stir in the tomato paste, sauce, and diced tomatoes. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes to an hour, stirring occasionally. The longer the better.
4. About 15-20 minutes before the sauce is done, fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil on high heat. Once it boils, cook spaghetti according to the package instructions.
5. Once the spaghetti and the sauce are both done, combine them into one pot and stir. 
6. Serve, topped with salt, pepper, and parmesan cheese.