Tomato Basil Pasta: A Quick "Dump" Meal for a Week Night

Dump Pasta Ingredients

Ingredients List

4 Servings Pasta (Any Kind You Like! I used Angel Hair)

1 Can Diced Tomatoes

1 Can Diced Tomatoes with Garlic and Basil

1 Parmesan Cheese ("Shaky" or a Brick. I used both.)

1-3 tsp Garlic Powder to Taste

1-3 tsp Italian Seasoning to Taste

1/4-1tsp Basil to Taste

2-3 Tbl Olive Oil 

Salt and Ground Black Pepper to Taste

1 Can Artichoke Hearts (Or quartered hearts)*

1 Can Corn*

 *All vegetables are up to your discretion. Don't like corn? Don't put it in! Don't like artichoke? You're crazy!;-) But you can still skip it! I've also done canned mushrooms in this recipe. Feel free to experiment! I make this different almost every time based on the veggies I have in my pantry. 

Prep Time- 5 Minutes if that Long (Picking out your Veggies and opening the cans.)

Cook Time- 20-25 Minutes
Makes 4-6 Servings

I call this Dump Pasta, because I'm just dumping the ingredients into a single pan and warming them up. This recipe is so easy! Also, all seasoning is to taste. We like extremely strong seasoning in my family. We also don't use very much salt, because we both have low salt/no salt diets. On top of that, unless you are purchasing Low Sodium veggies, most canned veggies have a ton of salt in them! We don't like to add to that amount.

Pasta Cooking

First, boil the pasta per the instructions on the box. I pick Angel Hair a lot of the time, because it cooks in about 4 minutes. That's super quick! 

Drained Pasta

Drain your pasta into a strainer, and leave it there for a few minutes. It does not need rinsed for this recipe. 

Dumped Ingredients

Dump in the cans of tomatoes. Drain off the water on the can of artichokes and the corn. Dump them in. Put the seasoning on top of that. Also, about a table spoon of Parmesan cheese. I used the "Shaky" cheese for this. I add ground pepper in at this point. I like a lot of it. 

Stirred Ingredients

Bring the dumped ingredients to a simmer. 

Simmering and Steamy

Let all the ingredients simmer until heated through. This can be used right then, or you can let them simmer for a bit, 10-15 minutes, and let this reduce. I left this on to reduce around 15-20 minutes, and it didn't hurt it. 

Pasta Dumped in the Veggies

After the veggies have simmered for a bit, put the pasta in and mix them together. Let this simmer 3-5 more minutes. Be careful to not let this simmer to long if an al dente pasta is preferred. 

Tomato Basil Pasta Dish

When served, add some shredded Parmesan to the top. This side is also good with a Tomato Basil Morning Star Farms burger or a chicken breast. It can also be served with a side salad.
I make this easy pasta dish two or three times a month. It originally started when I started pulling random things out of the pantry and through them in the pot.

I hope you enjoy this easy meal!