This recipe is really good for fall because you can double or triple the sauce and put the extra in the freezer for another day. I usually freeze the extra sauce in Ziploc freezer bags. Then this makes a super-quick weeknight supper because all you have to do is thaw the sauce and boil pasta.
Rigatoni with Spiced Meat Sauce
12 oz Rigatoni or other short pasta
1 lb ground beef
1 med onion, chopped
2-3 cloves garlic, pressed, minced, or grated
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup tomato paste
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper (optional, obviously)
1 tbsp red wine vinegar (and who are we kidding– any old vinegar will do here)
Cook pasta and set aside.
Brown meat. Add onion and garlic. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until onion is tender.
Stir in tomato paste, cinnamon, and cayenne. Cook 2 minutes.
Add 1 1/2 cups water and bring to boil. Reduce to simmer and cook until thickened, about 10 minutes.
Stir in vinegar and season again with salt and pepper if needed.
Toss with pasta and serve with salad.
Lela Davidson is an award-winning author and essayist (Blacklisted from the PTA and Who Peed on My Yoga Mat?), a freelance journalist and commentator for NBC News/TODAY Moms, and has been a regular contributor to iVillage and Huffington Post. Lela speaks nationally on motherhood, marriage, media, marketing, and the challenges of being over-40 in a Botox world. Her humorous, inspirational essays are featured in family and parenting magazines throughout North America and in Chicken Soup for the Soul: New Moms. Her book marketing advice has been featured in Writer’s Digest. Lela returned to corporate life in 2013 to launch a brand publishing, content and commerce division at an ecommerce startup. She is currently Vice President Media & Entertainment for lifestyle brand, Country Outfitter.