Nibbles and Narratives

Summer is officially here at our house.  We're on our second day of summer break from school and Hobbit has been enjoying the freedoms that it brings.  I figured I'd give her the rest of the week off from structured events and we'll just start our routine on Sunday.  During these unstructured days, I've managed to sneak in a bit of reading which has been wonderful.  I must say though - my mind is starting to wander in this section of the story so I'm hoping things will get engaging again soon but I'm almost done so either way, I'm thinking a new book will be on the horizon.

Lazy Pasta... I think that's what I'll call it.

Speaking of lazy summertime fun - I've got the perfect supper.  All you need to sacrifice is ten minutes of your time to toss it all together while the oven heats up, then you can go back to relaxing for the 40 minutes it takes to bake.  Sounds good, doesn't it?

Ingredients:

1. 1 16oz box of Ritoni
2. 1 24oz jar of your favorite tomato sauce
3. 24 oz of warm water
4. 2 cups of your favorite cheese or several slices of singles

Directions:

1. Set your oven to 425*F and lightly spray your 9x13 dish with cooking spray.  It helps with clean up after supper but you can skip this step if you want to, it isn't necessary.
2. Mix together your dry pasta, sauce and jar of warm water.  I shake the water in the jar to make sure and not leave any of the goodness inside.  Make sure your pasta is good and wet, then pour it in to your baking dish.
3. Cover your dish with foil, sealing it up good and tight.  Toss it in the oven for 40 minutes.
4. Uncover it, stir it up really well.  Make sure you scrape down the sides and get the sauce mixed up with the noodles evenly again.  At this point, your noodles will be al dente so if you like them softer, cook it a bit longer.  I would think another 10-15 minutes covered would do it but taste and see.
5. Now put your cheese on top, evenly so you don't have burnt peaks and unmelted valleys.
6. Toss it back in the oven for 10 more minutes or until you cheese is melted and your pasta is tender.

If you normally 'doctor' your sauce, don't forget to do it - I did and had to add salt after, not my favorite way to do things so be sure to attend to your sauce as you normally would.

This yummy dish can be done with meat as well, just have to take an extra few minutes to brown it first then toss it in with the sauce in step 2.  Seriously, it's that easy and the best part - Hobbit loved it and even had seconds!