Quick Pasta

By Food & Wine
Updated February 14, 2018
Credit: Hirsheimer and Hamilton
From rich and creamy fusilli with three cheeses to penne with spicy tomato sauce and shrimp, these quick and easy pasta dishes are ready in 45 minutes or less.
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Casarecce with Sausage, Pickled Cherries and Pistachios

Credit: © Con Poulos
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This creamy pasta from star chef Tom Colicchio comes together in just minutes, though you'll have to make the pickled cherries the night before.

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Penne with Shrimp and Spicy Tomato Sauce

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Paprika, cumin, and ginger lend their aromatic alchemy to a simple, no-cook tomato sauce. You can use the sauce with a wide range of ingredients.

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Spaghetti with Tomatoes, Basil, Olives, and Fresh Mozzarella

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This quick and easy summer pasta is equally good warm and at room temperature.

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Cheese Tortellini with Walnut Pesto

Credit: Christina Holmes
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Here's one of the quickest pesto sauces you'll come across. It's a perfect match for cheese tortellini, but you can use other tortellini such as mushroom or meat instead. The pesto is also great with just about any plain pasta.

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Country-Style Rigatoni

Credit: © Ashley Colbourne
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Sausage, escarole, and white beans join chunky rigatoni in a garlicky broth slightly thickened with Parmesan. Don't stir too much after adding the beans, or they'll break up.

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Spaghettini with Mushrooms, Garlic, and Oil

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We've added sautéed mushrooms to the classic—and very simple—spaghetti with garlic and oil, but the dish can still be made in no time at all. Regular white mushrooms are excellent here; portobellos or wild mushrooms would be great, too.

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Macaroni with Summer Squash, Salami, and Ricotta Tomato Sauce

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Sun-dried tomatoes add lots of flavor to the sauce. If you prefer zucchini, you can use it in place of the summer squash.

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Penne with Smoked Chicken and Mascarpone

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This quick recipe features penne tossed with smoked chicken and creamy mascarpone.

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Linguine Carbonara

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No book about quick pastas would be complete without a version of this classic. It's made with little more than bacon and eggs.

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Fusilli with Three Cheeses and Red Bell Pepper

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Macaroni and cheese goes upscale with fontina, mozzarella, and Parmesan. This particular combination provides plenty of flavor and meltability, but don't limit yourself to our selection: Make your own trio from the cheeses you have on hand.

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Cavatappi with Pepperoni

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Pepperoni gives this sauce its kick. Or try other hot sausages such as cured chorizo.

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Bow Ties with Sweet Potatoes and Canadian Bacon

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Bow-tie pasta with slices of sweet potato, diced Canadian bacon, and tomato puree form a harmonious dish of varied flavors, shapes, and colors. We use sage here, but if you don't care for it, try the same quantity of thyme instead.

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Cavatelli with Sardinian Meat Sauce

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If you can't find hot Italian sausage, use ground pork or mild sausage and a quarter teaspoon of dried red-pepper flakes.

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Ziti with Roasted Vegetables

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Roasting vegetables at a high temperature caramelizes them, making them intensely flavorful. You may think of roasting as a long process, but we cut each of the vegetables into small cubes or thin slices so they need only thirty minutes in the oven.

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Fettuccine with Turkey and Brandied Mushrooms

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A hint of brandy flavors the sautéed mushrooms. You might use port or sherry. For a special treat, try an assortment of wild mushrooms.

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Spaghetti with Parsley Almond Pesto

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Parsley, rather than the traditional basil, makes this pesto a year-round staple. Because the taste of almonds is more delicate than that of the usual pine nuts, we have chopped rather than ground them. Their flavor really comes through when you bite in to a nutty chunk.

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Penne with Swordfish, Mint, and Pine Nuts

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In this Sicilian dish, pasta, pine nuts, and chunks of swordfish are tossed in mint-spiked olive oil, with more fresh mint thrown in at the end. The combination is irresistible.

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Linguine with Ratatouille Sauce

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The vegetables that make up traditional Provençal ratatouille—eggplant, zucchini, tomatoes, and bell peppers—all go particularly well with basil. We've turned them into a pasta sauce that can also be served on polenta or on a hero with sausages.

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Farfalle with Yogurt and Zucchini

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Shredded zucchini cooks along with the farfalle in this tangy pasta.

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Fettuccine with Five-Spice Pork and Carrots

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Don't be tempted to cook the pork tenderloin any longer than specified, or you'll risk losing its juicy tenderness. By the time you combine it with the hot carrots and sauce and toss it with the pasta, it will be perfectly done.

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Bow Ties with Chicken, Watercress, and Walnuts

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Chicken and walnuts always taste great together. Here the combination is enhanced by the peppery bite of watercress.

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Orecchiette with Indian-Spiced Cauliflower and Peas

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Vegetables play an important role in the cuisine of India, and cauliflower and peas are a favorite combination. Here Italian orecchiette catches the peas and the sauce so that each bite is full of flavor.

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Ziti with Portobello Mushrooms, Caramelized Onions, and Goat Cheese

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Meaty mushrooms are enhanced by sweet caramelized onions and just enough tangy melted goat cheese in this delicious year-round pasta.

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Fettuccine with Mushrooms, Tarragon, and Goat-Cheese Sauce

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The delectably rich-tasting sauce that clings to each strand of fettuccine here requires no cooking. Just combine goat cheese, Parmesan, milk, and some of the still-hot pasta-cooking water, and it's done.

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Pasta With Radicchio and Pancetta

Credit: Hirsheimer and Hamilton
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Chicories pair naturally with cured, fat-streaked meats: They absorb the rendered drippings and extra salt without losing their vibrancy and pleasantly bitter notes. This pasta from Melissa Hamilton and Christopher Hirsheimer matches radicchio with pancetta, garlic, cream, and Parmigiano-Reggiano. Use a nonreactive pan so the radicchio leaves retain their color.

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