Simple Pot of Pasta

Last night, I had a hunger for garlic and I wanted to make something quick and easy for dinner. I put a pot of water on to boil, then I gathered lemon juice, crushed garlic, sea salt, pepper, and olive oil to marinate a couple of pieces of salmon. Today I'm going to focus on the pasta, so I'll skip explaining the salmon grilling instructions. If you are looking for salmon grilling ideas, I would look here http://search.foodnetwork.com/food/recipe/grilled+salmon/search.do?searchString=grilled+salmon&site=food&searchType=Recipe

I like a simple creamy sauce, that "cooks" when you mix it with hot, drained pasta. You can use any kind of pasta. I like fettucine best, but last night I used penne. It's a very simple, adaptable recipe.

Start with 1 cup of cottage cheese, 1 egg, 1/2 cup parmesan, finely chopped garlic, a dash of nutmeg, and salt and pepper. Mix it all together in a bowl while your pasta cooks. When your pasta is al dente, reserve about 1 cup of cooking liquid, then drain it in a strainer. Return the pasta to the pan, then pour the sauce mixture over the pasta, stirring to coat. Add approximately 1/2 cup of the cooking water to the mixture - the starch in the water helps with the sauce texture. The egg helps the cheeses to coat the pasta. Top the pasta with extra parmesan and freshly ground pepper.


For variation, you can switch up your cheese - I like to add a pizza blend sometimes - or you can use sour cream instead of the cottage cheese. I also like to finally chop onion and add it to the sauce, along with fresh herbs like basil. Chopped nuts like walnuts or pine nuts would be great sprinkled over the top.
My daughters and I placed the salmon on top of the pasta and added a simple salad. Yum.