One Pan Mexican Pasta

September has been kicking my ass.  When I have time to cook, it's going to be quick, and if I can pull it off while dirtying only one pan...well, that's a win-win.

This one pan Mexican pasta dish fits the bill.  Quick, easy, delicious.  And only one dirty pan.

The ingredients are simple, and you probably already have them in your pantry and freezer.

Brown some ground beef and onions, season, stir in the remaining ingredients, wait for the pasta to cook, and eat.  

One dirty pan.  Awesome.

One Pan Mexican Pasta

Ingredients

1 pound extra lean ground beef

1 medium onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced
1 ½ tsp chili powder
1 tsp sugar
½ tsp salt
½ tsp red pepper flakes
½ tsp basil
½ tsp oregano
½ tsp pepper

3 cups uncooked elbow macaroni

1 cup salsa, homemade or store-bought

1 ½ cups chicken broth

1 (28 oz / 796 ml) can diced tomatoes

1 (19 oz / 540 ml)can black beans, rinsed

1 ½ cups frozen corn kernels

Directions

Scramble fry ground beef with diced onions.  When beef is cooked and onions are translucent, add garlic and spices.  Stir.  

Add remaining ingredients, stirring well to combine.  Bring to a gentle boil.  Ensure the pasta is covered by liquid and allow to simmer, covered, until pasta is cooked through.  Stir occasionally while simmering.  If the liquid is absorbed before the pasta is cooked, add a small amount of water to the pan.

If you can resist eating this straight out of the pan, you can garnish with shredded cheese, sour cream, avocado or cilantro, but it's seriously yummy just the way it is :)

Looking for more one pan meals?  How about Italian sausage and peppers?

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I've had to suspend comments on this post temporarily due to an unbelievable amount of spam.  Who knew those spammers would be such fans of Mexican Pasta?  Feel free to email me directly if you have a pressing comment or question!

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One Pan Italian Sausage and Pepper Pasta

In my never ending quest for quick, healthy, and tasty weeknight meals, I find myself referring more to Pinterest and a few favourite food bloggers, and less to the collection of cookbooks I've built over the years.

Which is how I stumbled across this recipe at Iowa Girl Eats.  I made some minor changes to accommodate what I had on hand, and increased the quantities to allow for many teenagers feeding at the same time.  I ended up with an amazing dish that everyone ate, it took me less than an hour to make, and I only dirtied one pan....and a cutting board...and a knife... and a spatula.

Red and green peppers, and a Vidalia onion.

Mild Italian sausages, because not everyone in our house likes the hot ones.  Use Hot Italian sausages if you prefer.

When they're finished cooking, remove them from the pan and cut into quarters.  Then sauté your veggies in the same pan.

Pour in some chicken stock and marinara sauce, along with a few spices.  Add the pasta and sausages.  Simmer until the pasta is cooked.  Eat.

One Pan Italian Sausage and Pepper Pasta

adapted from Iowa Girl Eats

2 packages Italian sausage, 10 sausages total

1/4 cup water

1 red bell pepper, sliced

1 green bell pepper, sliced

1/2 large white Vidalia onion, or one small cooking onioin, sliced

4 cloves garlic, minced

salt and pepper to taste

4 cups chicken broth 

3 cups marinara sauce

1/2 tsp basil

1/2 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp crushed chili pepper 

1/4 tsp thyme

1 lb / 900 g penne pasta

Cook the sausages in a large pan, this will feed eight people....unless you cut the quantities in half.  Once they start to brown, pour in 1/4 cup of water so they don't blacken and stick to the pan.  While they're cooking, slice up your peppers and onions.  When the sausages are cooked through, remove to a plate or cutting board.

Sauté the peppers and onions in the same pan that the sausages cooked it.  Don't clean it...you want to keep those pan flavours.  When the veggies are crisp tender, add the garlic and sauté for another minute or so.  Salt and pepper to taste.

Pour in the chicken broth (I used turkey broth) and a good quality, authentic marinara sauce.  This is not the time to be opening up the Ragu or the Prego.  I used a jar of the White Linen Marinara Sauce from Costco. Stir in the spices and bring the mixture to a boil.  Add the pasta and ensure it is entirely covered by the liquid. Cut the cooked sausages into quarters and place them on on top of the rest of the ingredients in the pan. Cover and simmer 8-10 minutes until the pasta is cooked al dente. Stir and serve, with or without some shredded cheese or shaved parmesan on top :)

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