Kasey and Karena: Pantry time-savers (+recipes)

On a busy work night it's good to have go-to recipes to whip up quickly.

We are back in full swing with work and are looking forward to sharing some of our new adventures with you all. We definitely have less time for cooking these days so we have been opting for fast and tasty dinners.

We always have dried pasta in our cupboard, so it is an easy go-to dinner for us. We like to keep our pasta dishes light, using vegetables and fresh citrus.

Today we are sharing a couple of our favourite, easy pasta recipes. The first uses broccoli and salty bits of bacon, which is also delicious the next day for lunch.

The next recipe has lots of peas (which we always have in our freezer) and a little bit of creme fraiche to give it a touch of decadence.

Penne with lemon and peas

Serves 4

400g penne pasta
1 Tbsp olive oil
Juice and zest 1 lemon
1/2 cup cream
2 Tbsp creme fraiche
Salt and pepper
1kg peas fresh or frozen
1 cup grated parmesan
2 cups basil leaves

Cook the pasta in a large saucepan of salted boiling water for 10-12 minutes or until al dente. Drain and set aside, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid.

Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.

Add the lemon juice, zest, cream, creme fraiche, reserved water, salt and pepper and bring to the boil. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until slightly thickened.

Add the peas and pasta, stir to combine and cook for a further minute. Remove from the heat and stir through the parmesan and basil.

Serve.

Pasta with broccoli, sage and bacon

Serves 4

400g pasta shells
1 head broccoli
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 cup sage leaves
200g bacon, chopped
2 spring onions, chopped
1/2 tsp chilli flakes
1/2 Zest lemon
1/4 cup grated parmesan

Cook the pasta in salted boiling water for 8 minutes. Add the broccoli and cook for a further minute or until the broccoli is tender and pasta is al dente.

Drain and set aside. Heat oil in a large frying pan over high heat. Add the sage and cook for 30 seconds or until the sage is crisp. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Add the bacon and spring onions to the pan and cook for 2 minutes or until softened.

Add the broccoli and pasta and stir to combine.

Divide between bowls and top with the crispy sage, chili, lemon zest and parmesan to serve.