Penne Pasta with basil (Photo: Courtesy)

Pasta comes in a variety of shapes and forms, and today we make Penne pasta. Penne is an extruded type of pasta with cylinder-shaped pieces, their ends cut at an angle.

Penne is the plural form of the Italian penna, deriving from Latin penna, and is a cognate of the English word pen.

WHAT YOU WILL NEED:

2 garlic cloves, grated

1 onion, diced

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 packet of cherry tomatoes

250g pasta (boiled)

1/2 cup pasta water (from boiling the pasta)

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 teaspoon black pepper

Salt to taste

Fresh basil leaves

METHOD:

In a nonstick pan over medium heat, put the olive oil and saute the garlic and onions until golden brown. Add the cherry tomatoes. Mix well. Add the tomato paste, and season with some salt and pepper. Add in the boiled pasta and give it a good mix.

Now add half a cup of the pasta water and bring to a simmer. Once the water has reduced, add the fresh basil leaves. Mix it up or toss it up and you are ready to serve this delicious basil pasta in no time.