Penne Pasta Bake

Next to Indian food, my fav cuisine would be Italian. I LOVE tomatoes, and combined with olive oil, garlic and fresh herbs-- tossed together with pasta-- its heavenly.

1lb penne pasta(or ziti)

2-3T EV olive oil*
1 small red onion or half 1 vidalia- chopped
3-4 cloves of garlic(we like a lot)
fresh tomato puree or 28oz can of crushed tomatoes.
fresh basil leaves if possible**
dried thyme
dried basil
red chili powder
1t honey(optional)
black pepper
kosher salt
a handful of romano cheese(or parmesan)
8 oz or so of fresh mozzarella sliced(soft, moist, not rubbery) or regular shredded mozz

Boil the pasta while making the sauce, drain
preheat oven to 375-400
butter the bottom and sides of a large baking dish(9x13?)


Heat oil in a large pot. Add garlic, fry for a minute then add the onions and cook till lt brown. Add in the herbs and spices, then the tomatoes. Cover and simmer for about 10 mins. Turn off the heat and stir in the romano/parmesan cheese. Then mix the pasta into this. Pour it into the baking dish and top with mozzarella slices or shreds. For variation you could also use feta cheese. Bake around 30 mins or until cheese is melted.


*(be sure to use "extra virgin"olive oil which is the first pressing of the olives, and retains the most flavour, and is better quality, less processed)
** I make a chutney of basil leaves, some coriander leaves, lime juice, salt, and blend in a little olive oil. Then I freeze some. Its great to use later in recipes, when there is no fresh basil available.



If you are very ambitious, you can make your own fresh mozzarella!