Pasta with Creamy Tomato Sauce

Just one more week! Just one more week of exams before I can truly put all my textbooks behind me and truly enjoy and soak in all the holiday joy. I just need to get through the exam period hurdle and then it will all be fun and food for a whole 2.5 weeks!

For me, this Christmas is a bit more special because I’m going to go on vacation to Hong Kong and spend some time with relatives and of course, the boyfriend!

So this Christmas is especially exciting for me and honestly, the biggest motivation that is pushing me through the studying crunch is really just the thought of getting exams over with so I can start packing and planning for all the fun stuff I’ll be doing in Hong Kong.

So much excitement waiting for me in one week. But until then, it’s endless studying and no time for anything else, especially cooking. That doesn’t mean I will throw in the towel and resort to fast food. Instead I turned to the pantry staples – pasta sauce and pasta – and combined it with what I had in the fridge to create a quick pasta meal. Not the fanciest meal in the world, but it was comforting, delicious and quick!

This takes no more than 10 minutes to put together (including the time it takes the boil water), and has a good balance of veggies, protein and carbs – definitely beats takeout food any day.

Pasta with Creamy Tomato Sauce

Serves 1 hungry university student.

• 2oz whole-wheat pasta (use regular if you prefer)
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 1/2c prepared tomato sauce (preferably low-sodium)
• pinch of dried basil and oregano
• 1 tablespoon cream cheese
• 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
• salt and pepper

Fill a large pot with lots of water. Bring it to a rolling boil and drop in the pasta. Cook until al dente.

Meanwhile, in a skillet, heat olive oil on medium heat. Lightly sauté garlic until fragrant. Add in tomato sauce and the dried herbs. Continuing heating on medium heat until it comes to a boil. Reduce heat to low, add in cream cheese and stir until well combined.

When pasta is al dente, drain quickly and reserve a quarter cup of pasta water. Quickly pour the hot pasta into the sauce. Toss until pasta is ell-coated with the sauce. If the sauce becomes too thick, add in a tiny bit of pasta water to thin it out. Season with salt and pepper, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and serve immediately.