Creamy Pasta Sauce Recipe

Lately I have been really good and have been cooking nice, wholesome meals with plenty of veg in them. I've been really proud of myself and have actually really enjoyed cooking over this past week or so, too but sometimes you just need a break. You just need a quick, easy dinner and that is where I turn to the pre-made tortellini you find in the cold section of the supermarket. While this packet pasta might be a little more expensive than beans on toast, it is my absolute favourite easy meal because with the right sauce it tastes just like a proper meal! Usually I just use a home brand tomato based pasta sauce for this tortellini and stir it through the pasta after draining, but last week I didn't feel like a tomato based sauce, I felt like something cheesy and creamy, and so I whipped up this little gem:

Home Made Creamy Pasta Sauce

Serves 2

Ingredients:

1/4 of a brown onion 

1 teaspoon of minced garlic (I use the stuff out of the jar)

A splash of cooking oil

2 1/2 cups of milk

1 1/2 cups of grated cheese

2 teaspoons of corn flour

2 mushrooms

salt and pepper (to taste)

The How To:

1. Finely chop onions and mushrooms while warming a splash of oil in a large fry pan over medium heat.
2. Add the onions and garlic to the oil and cook until the onions start turning transparent. Keep the onions and garlic moving around the pan as you cook to prevent the garlic burning.
3. Add the mushrooms to the fry pan and cook until brown, continuing to move the ingredients around the pan as you go.
4. Add milk to the fry pan and heat gently. While the milk is heating, put the cornflour into a cup, add a small amount of milk and stir until a thick paste is formed. Add a little more milk (just a touch) and stir it through the paste, making it a little runnier.
5. Add the cornflour to the pan gradually, stirring as you go. Continue stirring and begin to add cheese, little by little, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan so it doesn't stick.
6. Turn the heat up a little, add salt and pepper and stir some more. The sauce will begin to thicken at this point. If it doesn't start thickening in a few minutes, you can add a little more cornflour using the method above. Be careful of doing this though - you don't want it to turn too thick when it finally starts!
7. Once the sauce has thickened to just less than what you like it, turn the heat back down, add the cooked pasta to the sauce and gently stir it through.
8. Grab a bowl and serve yourself a generous carb-a-licious serving. Pasta is the best comfort food!

I know it seems like there is a lot involved in this recipe, but there really isn't - you've just got to keep stirring as you add things. It doesn't take too long to cook (only about 5-10 minutes) and the recipe is really versatile, allowing you to add veggies or even bacon (! why did I not think of this when I was making it?) to change up the flavour a little or make it a wee bit healthier. I was really proud of myself for "just winging it" in the kitchen the other night and coming up with this - it turned out delicious! Let me know if you try this at home, or share your own pasta sauce recipe with me below. Pasta is a favourite of mine and I'm always on the look out for new ways to cook it. :)