Creamy Beef and Rigatoni

Heart and soul, in a delicious bowl: tender pasta and a creamy Bolognese-style sauce that will blow your mind. Made with pantry staples, and ready in less than 30 minutes. Even I'm amazed by this voluptuous meal.

And I'm not kidding about this being a pantry staple dinner! All you need from the fridge is the beef, parmesan and some sort of dairy (milk, half and half, or cream). The rest of the ingredients come from the pantry and spice rack: pasta, tomato sauce, and a few dried herbs and spices.

About the "dried" ingredients, that brings me to the minced onion and minced garlic. I used the dried/dehydrated versions of these sauce staples and it was a HUGE time-saver. Truth is, I adore their flavor and texture too. They're flaky, toasty, nutty, and smooth; not pungent or bitter. And the best part? You just pull them from the spice rack; there's no chopping, no cleanup, and definitely no tears. You can find both minced onion and minced garlic in the spice aisle next to their ground counterparts.

So, stop reading and go make this. You'll be happy you did.

Creamy Beef and Rigatoni 

1 pound rigatoni pasta, or any pasta of choice
1 pound lean ground beef
2 teaspoons dried minced onion
1 teaspoon dried minced garlic
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
Salt and ground black pepper
2 cups tomato sauce, from a carton or can
1/2 cup milk, half and half or heavy cream
2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
Fresh basil leaves for serving, optional

Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Cover with foil to keep warm.
Meanwhile, brown the beef in a large skillet over medium-high heat, breaking up the meat as it cooks. Add the minced onion, minced garlic, oregano, basil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper and stir to coat. Cook for 1 minute, until the herbs are fragrant. Add the tomato sauce and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low, partially cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the milk (or half and half or cream) and 2 tablespoons of the parmesan cheese and cook for 1 minute to heat through, stirring frequently. Transfer the pasta to serving bowls and top with the meat sauce. Top with basil leaves (if using) and serve with extra parmesan cheese on the side.
Serves 4