During a busy week or after a long day, I always find the easiest thing to throw together for dinner is pasta. Sometimes life gets very busy, and it feels like I’m throwing the same old pasta dishes together all the time. Everyone complains, including me, so I try to mix it up a bit with different dishes. The key is finding a recipe or creating something that is as easy as the same old thing you usually make because the whole point is that you are making them when you are busy.

One of the simplest things you can do is simply switch your sauce and/or your style of pasta. If you use a premade pasta sauce, try to buy a couple of different kinds. Instead of the same old spaghetti noodles, you can use pastas of different shapes, sizes, and colors. Changing these basic things can really make a huge difference.

Orange Pasta Sauce with Linguine

Ingredients

¼ cup green onions, finely chopped

¾ cup dry white wine

1 cup heavy cream

2/3 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

2 tbs. orange rind, grated

1 package of linguine

1. In a pot, combine the green onions and white wine. Boil them together for about 9 minutes, until it boils down to about 1 tbs.

2. Meanwhile, begin to prepare you linguine noodles according to the package directions.

3. Add the heavy cream to the onion mixture, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, cook for 5 more minutes.

4. Stir in Parmesan until the sauce is smooth. Add the grated orange rind.

5. Immediately toss over the cooked linguine.

ngredients

2 tbs. extra virgin olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 celery stalk, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

salt and pepper, to taste

2 -32 oz. cans crushed tomatoes

4 -6 basil leaves

2 dried bay leaves

4 tbs. unsalted butter

Your choice of pasta