Okay, here’s my attempt at a blog post, following all your instructions:
Alright, so the other day I was craving pasta, but I’ve been trying to cut back on gluten. So, I thought, “Why not try making some gluten-free penne pasta?” I’d never done it before, but hey, there’s a first time for everything, right?
First things first, I gathered my ingredients. Here’s what I used:
- Gluten-free penne pasta (I found a brand made from brown rice flour)
- Some good ol’ olive oil
- Garlic, because, duh!
- A can of crushed tomatoes
- Fresh basil (from my little window herb garden!)
- Salt and pepper, naturally
- A bit of grated Parmesan cheese (optional, but come on!)
Let’s get cooking
I started by boiling a big pot of water. I threw in a generous pinch of salt, because, as my grandma always said, “Pasta water should taste like the sea!” Once it was boiling, I tossed in the gluten-free penne. I kept a close eye on it, and gave it a good stir now and then to prevent it from sticking.
While the pasta was cooking, I grabbed another pan and heated up some olive oil. I minced a couple of cloves of garlic (maybe three… I love garlic) and sautéed them in the oil until they were nice and fragrant. Be careful not to burn it!
Then, I poured in the crushed tomatoes, added some salt and pepper, and let it all simmer for a bit. I chopped up the fresh basil and stirred that in, too.
Once the pasta was cooked, which, for this gluten-free stuff, was about 8 minutes, I drained it, but I saved a little bit of that starchy pasta water. Just a splash! It can help make the sauce a bit creamier.
Finally, I combined the pasta and the sauce in the pan, gave it a good toss, and let it all mingle for a minute or two. That’s where the magic happens.
I served it up in a bowl, sprinkled some Parmesan cheese on top, and BAM! Dinner is served. And you know what? It was actually pretty darn good for a first try! The pasta had a nice texture, not mushy at all, and the sauce was simple but flavorful. I’d totally make this again.