Leftover Pasta Casserole

Whenever I can, since this recipe has come into my life, I try to make too much pasta when cooking other recipes. So far, no matter what I make, the Herbes de Provence just elevate the whole thing. Such a creamy, unctuous, delicious concoction that helps reduce waste. I keep a container in my freezer I add little bits of leftover pasta and blam! When I have 32oz, into the oven it goes to make this little wonder. There may be combinations of pasta recipes that won't work together, but I haven't found it yet. If the leftover pasta is overly milk, like a Pasta con Aglio et Olio, you can add a TBSP or 2 of marinara sauce or of pesto and that should do the trick.

Number of portions: 6 servings
Serving size: ~310 g
Calories per serving: ~490 kcal
Speed: Everyday Dish
Experienced cook (active time): 25–30 min
Novice cook (active time): 35–45 min
Total elapsed time: 55–65 min
LHSS Score: 3.7 / 10

32oz/900g leftover pasta (if using dry pasta, dry-to-cooked is roughly 1:2) 

1/4 cup (2oz/58gr) butter

1-2 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 cup (30g) flour

1 cup chicken broth

1 1/2 cups milk

2 cups mozzarella cheese, divided (80+80)

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided (20+20g)

1 tsp herbs de Provence

1/8 tsp ground nutmeg

1 tsp Salt 

1/2 tsp pepper 

(if using plain pasta, add 2 Tbsps. to 1/4 cup tomato sauce or something else)

Chopped fresh parsley, for garnish

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Lightly grease a gratin dish.
2. Cook the pasta; drain and set aside. If you have leftover pasta to use, see NOTE
3. Meanwhile, in a large sauté pan, melt the butter. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, 1-2 minutes. Whisk in the flour until smooth.
4. Gradually whisk in the chicken broth and milk, stirring until smooth. Cook and stir for about 5 minutes, or until sauce has thickened. Reduce heat and add half of the mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. Season with herbs de Provence, nutmeg, salt and pepper, to taste.
5. Combine the sauce with the cooked linguine and toss to coat well. Transfer the pasta to the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with the remaining cheeses.
6. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until bubbly and golden brown. Let stand 5-10 minutes before serving. Sprinkle with fresh parsley for garnish.
7. Serve with a green salad.

NOTE: If you have leftover pasta, weigh it to subtract that amount from the dry pasta you'll cook to make up the difference, if needed. 1lb dry pasta = 455g, while 114g pasta = 4oz. Once cooked, this amount of pasta turns into 910g (2lbs), 228g (8oz).

Onion, Cheddar and Bacon Pasta

This is more of a cold weather dish, with the warmth of the browned onions and smoky bacon. Wonderfully warming and creamy. 

5 servings 

6 to 8oz bacon, cut into lardons

(reserve ¼ cup bacon fat)

4 medium onions (24oz/680g) thinly sliced

¼ cup white wine

1 lb spaghetti, linguini or fettucine etc.

1½ cups whipping (heavy) cream

6oz shredded Cheddar cheese 

Salt, to taste

1. Cook the bacon until just before it crisps, or until it is of a light golden colour. Remove it from the fat and set aside, keeping about ¼ cup of fat (if there isn't enough fat, add butter). 
2. To the hot bacon fat add the onion to caramelize. To properly caramelize, cook the onions over med-low heat, preferably using a diffuser, stirring often; this can take a half hour+, be patient. It's worth it. 
3. When the onions are of a delicious brown and very soft, the sugars will have stuck to the bottom of the pan creating the fond and a lot of the flavor. Deglazed with the wine. Add as much wine as you need to get that lovely fond moving... (within reason. If you want more white wine, pour some in a glass and drink it).
4. Put the pasta on to boil.
5. Add the cream to the onions and bring to the boiling point. Turn off the heat. Mix in the cheese and the bacon.
6. Pour over the noodles; toss to coat. Test the seasoning and add salt to your liking, a pinch at a time.
7. Serve with a good grind of black pepper.

Garlic Pasta Boiled in its own Sauce

This is a magical little number, where the pasta is cooked in the milk broth, releases is starches and thickens the sauce. All in a single saucepan. It's easily doubled. If you want to control the amount of garlic flavour in the sauce, I recommend weighing the garlic - stores rarely care which varietal they sell, some cloves are huge, others quite small.

Servings: 2

2 Tbsps (1oz/28gr) butter

2 cloves garlic (8gr), minced

2 cups mild broth such as chicken 

1 cup milk, or more, as needed

8 oz uncooked fettuccine or spaghetti

Salt and pepper, to taste

OPTIONAL: 4–5 oz (115–140 g) Swiss chard leaves, ribs removed, sliced into strips

1 oz (28g) Parmesan cheese, grated, + 1 oz (28g) for garnishing

2 Tbsps fresh parsley leaves, chopped 

1. Have your broth at the ready to stop the browning of the garlic.
2. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Just as the butter melts, put in the garlic. This next part is really quick, just a minute or so. Add the garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant and just starting to lightly brown.
3. Immediately stir in the broth, milk and pasta. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
4. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer, stirring frequently, until the pasta is cooked through, about 18 to 20 minutes. 
5. If using Swiss chard, stir in a couple minutes before it's done.
6. Stir in the Parmesan. 
7. If the mixture is too thick, add more milk as needed until the desired consistency is obtained.
8. Serve immediately, garnished with parsley.