Shopping My Pantry

I think most of you can relate; it’s the age-old question: “What should I make for dinner?” Every time it pops into my head, I cringe a little.

I’m not a food blogger or a chef, but I do love food, and I definitely enjoy eating. The thought of grocery shopping at the end of a long day, however, is far less appealing.

So today, I challenged myself: surely there had to be something in the fridge or cupboard I could throw together?

It’s amazing what you can come up with when you get creative.

Here you go…

Lemon Tuna Penne

1/2 lb penne pasta, or whatever you happen to have in the cupboard, linguine?

2 cans of Tuna, any brand, although, I always buy pole and line

1 lemon or lime

1 cup of frozen peas, cook with pasta towards the end

1 cup sugar snap peas, cook with pasta toward the end

1 large bunch of basil, or parsley, or both, chopped finely

2 large cloves of garlic or more

chilli flakes, at your discretion, I probably used 2 tsp or more

1/2 cup to 3/4 cup Olive oil, start with less and add more to thin out the mixture

Method

Bring salted water to a boil, add pasta, and cook until al dente. In a sauté pan, warm the olive oil and garlic, then gradually add chilli flakes. Keep warm until ready to use. Once the pasta is cooked, add the tuna, grated lemon rind, lemon juice, and chopped herbs. When warm, pour the olive oil mixture over the pasta and combine, adding more olive oil if necessary. Serve with cracked pepper and Parmesan cheese.

This was surprisingly delicious! Serves 2 with leftovers for lunch. Double everything for a family of 4.

Side note

I happened to have all of these ingredients in my fridge and freezer, which made this meal come together surprisingly easily.

Try adding diced tomatoes to the olive oil first, letting them cook down until they become soft and saucy. If you want to add more vegetables, edamame works beautifully in place of the peas. Green onions, bell peppers, or even capers would also be delicious.

Really, this is the kind of dish where you can toss in whatever you have on hand. Sometimes the most random combinations turn out to be the most wonderful.