Sun-Dried Tomato Penne Pasta

This great pasta recipe I found on Very Best Baking. It is so easy and quick, 15 mins. I already had mostly everything on hand too which makes going to the grocery store easier. I made the pasta exactly how the recipe stated and it was really good but during this blog post I will give my suggestions on what I would do more or less of. To be really honest, if you didn't want to spend the money on a jar of sun-dried tomatoes then you could do without (kind of defeats the name of the dish, oh well) although the tomatoes add a little extra flavor, it would still be delicious!

First, boil 2 1/2 C of penne pasta (original recipe said 2 C but I thought I had a little too much sauce) according to directions on the package. Two minutes before the noodles are done add in 1/3 C of chopped sun-dried tomatoes. Then drain.

Pasta & sun-dried tomatoes

While noodles are cooking, combine the following in a saucepan on medium to low heat: one 12oz can of Evaporated Lowfat 2% Milk, 2 C of shredded Italian-style four cheese blend (I had a pizza blend of cheese on hand so I just used that), 1/2-3/4 tsp of dried basil (original said 1 tsp), 1/4 tsp garlic powder, and 1/4 tsp ground black pepper.

Evaporated milk, cheese blend, basil, garlic powder, & pepper

   

Occasional stir sauce mixture. Once cheese is melted remove saucepan from heat. Add drained noodles & tomatoes to cheese sauce, stir until combined. 

Combined penne & sauce

Then enjoy! 

We ate it with a buttered toasted baguette sprinkled with Parmesan cheese....so yummy!

The finished product

Sun-Dried Tomato Penne Pasta

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 C penne pasta
• 1/3 C of chopped sun-dried tomatoes
• 1 (12 fl oz) can of evaporated lowfat 2% milk
• 2 C shredded Italian-style four cheese blend
• 1/2-3/4 tsp dried basil
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Two minutes before noodles are done add in sun-dried tomatoes. Then drain pasta.
2. While pasta is cooking, combine the rest of the ingredients in a saucepan over low-medium heat. Stir occasionally until cheese is melted. Once cheese is melted, remove from heat. 
3. Add drained pasta & tomatoes to cheese sauce. Stir until combined.