Got home at 5pm tonight. Just in time to watch my four year old boy while my wife took my girls to their after school activities. Appointment with a landscaper at 6:30pm and the first playoff hockey game for my Carolina Hurricanes in a decade. Dinner for the two of us had to be super fast. I was informed he wanted spaghetti for dinner. Nothing new, the boy LIVES on noodles. So I grabbed a big pot, filled it with water and cranked up the burner. Spaghetti for two in progress.
For my son, a little parmesan cheese, or as we call it around here "shaky cheese" and he's good to go. For me, not so much. I had about 10 minutes to figure out and prep what I was going to do with my spaghetti. Time to raid the fridge, freezer and pantry. I find a virtual treasure trove of goodies to make a super quick and delicious Spaghetti Aglio e Olio (garlic and oil).
In the freezer, I find frozen artichokes. A quick rinse with cold water and then into the microwave with a splash of water for two minutes. In the fridge, a jar of capers will provide some great brininess and some fresh parmesan cheese which I quickly grate up. In the pantry, a few remaining sliced sun-dried tomatoes, which I add to the artichokes in the final 30 seconds in the microwave to wake them up. In the drawer, some crushed red pepper flakes for heat. And I grab two cloves of garlic from the counter, peel and slice thinly. Prep is 100% done, and the water isn't even boiling yet!
Water's boiling, spaghetti is in, and 8 minutes later, spaghetti is out. Time to pull it all together. I take out my son's portion, shake on that cheese and leave it to cool. Pot's back on the stove with a swig of olive oil, garlic and red pepper flakes.
60 seconds later, in goes the artichoke hearts and sun-dried tomatoes.
A quick toss, then the spaghetti and capers, followed by the cheese.
On to the plate and topped with a drizzle of lemon olive oil I picked up during the family summer vacation to Maine last year. A heaping pile of goodness, and within 5 minutes, a licked-clean plate.
Good eats in record time. From first thought of dinner to last dish washed in under one hour. Now that's what I call fast food.