Part of the real shitty thing about being an artist is that money is not your friend.  recently i have been feeling the pinch rather heavily.  im working a part time job with full time bills, and from now since february, it has caught up with me.  the silver lining is that today my boss said i’m a busy bee & deserve a full time position so he’s “changing my status.”  YIPPEEE!!

until the flow of money increases, i have been doing all i can to avoid going to the grocery store.  every little bit helps, which is why it pays to have already invested in cheap, satisfying foods like rice, pasta, & potatoes.  last night, i made myself a pasta with tomato sauce for lunch today, and it came out so well, i thought i’d share it.  may i present to you…..

CHEAP & Easy Pasta Sauce

    ingredients  (amounts at your discretion)
olive oil
salt & pepper
garlic
tomatoes
red wine
oregano

the oregano & tomatoes were fresh from my garden, & growing your own herbs is really one of the best ways to save money.  herbs add so much to a meal (its true! believe me, i never trusted this either until i started growing them myself), and growing them is so much cheaper than buying cut herbs at the store anytime you need them.

now, start by heating up your olive oil in a small pot with salt & pepper thrown in.  let it warm up on MED heat so it doesn’t burn or overheat.  when its properly warm, throw in your chopped tomatoes.  i used a few bite-sized tomatoes (cut in half), 2 small ones & a slightly bigger one.  let those sizzle amongst the oil, and be sure to stir up eventually so they get covered by the oil and seasoning.

once they start to break down, i mashed them a little bit with my wooden spoon.  don’t overdo it; think of it as prodding them into sauce.

 
meanwhile, i’m boiling whole wheat spaghetti.  once thats done, drain out MOST OF the water.  keep some of that starchy pasta water to add to your sauce later.  also, if you are done with your pasta but your sauce still needs more time to cook, it will keep your pasta from becoming stuck into the form of the pan its in.

once your sauce starts to look like a sauce, throw in minced garlic.  i only had one clove left but adding more than one would probably be a good idea.  just remember not to do this too early when cooking, or your garlic will burn.

cook it down a bit longer, throw some red wine in if you’re in the mood, and when you can’t wait any longer, toss your pasta & pasta water in to make your masterpiece.

 
now, i had chopped up my oregano and set it aside to add it much later, as i didn’t want it to get cooked down at all.  i ended up totally forgetting about it until i had put in the tupperware & was about to pack it all up.  oops!  no matter though, because i added it in to the tupperware container and then mixed it around so it would be ruminating with the pasta and sauce.  without cooking it, the flavor stays strong — & why else would you want to add oregano?

enjoy your cheap pasta sauce!!  unfortunately it looks like my tomatoes are done for the year so i’ll probably have to buy more at the grocery store.  o well………..can’t avoid that place forever!

love,
feisty