Penne Arrabiatta Fusion

Here's an example of what you can do when you have very little ingredients. I found myself trying to create something out of nothing the other night. Since I had just moved into a new apartment, I hadn't quite had the time to go grocery shopping for the week. What I found in my fridge gave me this idea.

Ingredients:
Penne pasta
Arrabiatta sauce from Trader Joe's
Cilantro
Baby carrots
Cayenne pepper (as needed)
Olive Oil

Cook desired amount of pasta. In the meantime, chop cilantro and julienne the carrots. Oil a pan over high heat with 2 Tbsp of olive oil. Throw the carrots into the pan. Cook until desired crunchiness. Carrots take awhile to cook and depending on how crunchy you like them, could take a bit of time. Once the carrots are cooked to your taste, throw in a handful of cilantro. Stir. Toss in desired amount of pasta. Stir. Pour in about a quarter amount of sauce to pasta. You want to put enough to give the dish a good amount of moisture, but you don't want to drown the pasta in the sauce. This dish is a variation of a penne arrabiatta that is light on sauce.

For some hotness, add cayenne pepper. Enjoy!

Vegan Fried Rice

Reminds me of home without the meat and consistent nagging. The best part about this dish is that it's versatile! Try it with different kinds of vegetables...

Ingredients:
12 oz. Bag of Frozen Peas (and Carrots if available)
Box of Firm Tofu
1 Small Yellow Onion
Cooked Medium Grain Rice
Garlic Powder
Soy Sauce
Salt
Black Pepper
Canola Oil or Sesame Oil

First cook about 2 cups of rice in rice cooker. Prepare to cook by chopping the onions. Usually the rice takes about 20 minutes to cook. Once you've reached close to 20 minutes, take a fork and pre-mash the tofu. Then take a quarter of the frozen veggies bag and 2 Tbsp of oil and dump into pan. Heat the veggies until thawed. Place chopped onions in pan. Throw the salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Cook until soften. Throw in the mashed tofu. Stir. Now spoon in the cooked rice. Add about 2 Tbsp of soy sauce.

Salt, pepper, and soy sauce to taste. Gobble it up.