Pasta recipes

Creamy acorn squash soup with warm spices (mace, ginger, cinnamon), pureed smooth with chicken broth, then simmered with ditalini pasta and topped with sweetened sour cream.

Chilled pasta and crab salad tossed with creamy mayo, garlic, and diced onion. Add broccoli, peas, or cauliflower for a loaded cold pasta dish that's perfect for potlucks.

Mexican pasta pie layered with ziti, taco-seasoned tomatoes, black beans, chicken, ricotta, and cheddar. A baked casserole that combines pasta night with taco night in one dish.

Pasta and peas tosses ditalini macaroni with sweet peas, sauteed mushrooms, and a quick tomato juice sauce. Melted fontina cheese pulls it all together for a 30-minute Italian weeknight dinner for two.

A make-ahead layered pasta salad loaded with kidney beans, corn, bell peppers, and a creamy taco-seasoned dressing. This Southwestern pasta salad feeds a crowd and tastes even better the next day.

Vegetarian pasta with cannellini beans, canned tomatoes, garlic, and oregano in a quick simmered sauce. A hearty one-skillet dinner with pantry staples.

Black beans and fettuccine topped with a spiced ketchup-tomato sauce, steamed broccoli, and colorful bell peppers. A low-calorie vegetarian pasta that feeds a crowd.

Pasta e fagioli (pasta fazool) with red kidney beans, crushed tomatoes, and vegetables simmered into a thick, hearty Italian soup. Vegetarian comfort food made from dried beans.

Italian pasta fagioli soup with cannellini and kidney beans, bacon, ditalini pasta, and aromatic vegetables. The classic Italian peasant pasta-and-bean soup ready in 40 minutes.

Penne tossed in a light béchamel cream sauce with flaked canned salmon, sweet peas, parsley, and parmesan. Pantry-friendly 30-minute weeknight dinner.

This fiery Cajun chicken pasta smothers spaghetti in a spicy triple-pepper tomato sauce loaded with butter-sautéed chicken. A bold Louisiana-style feast for heat lovers.

Oven-braised lamb stew with flageolet beans, elbow macaroni, fresh oregano, and Roma tomatoes. Browned lamb simmers in stock for 1 1/2 hours, then the pasta cooks right in the pot.

Authentic Veneto-style pasta e fagioli with dried beans, prosciutto, rosemary-infused olive oil, and freshly grated Parmigiano. A rich Northern Italian classic that's worth every minute.

The sauce was too much like spagetti sauce. I cooked the pork chops in the sauce for hours and it was tender, but the pork flavor was diminished; I would prefer to taste the pork more.

Cubed turkey and elbow macaroni tossed with bell peppers, celery, and onions in a basil-spiked mayonnaise dressing, then baked warm. A quick 30-minute leftover turkey meal the whole family will love.

Golden-seared chicken with asparagus, snow peas, and baby peas in a silky tarragon cream sauce, finished with lemon zest over fresh fettuccine. Spring on a plate in 45 minutes.