Anyone who knows me well enough also knows that I love pasta! This is one form of carbs that rules above the rest .... and I have no fixed recipes for most of my pasta dishes .... it is more a matter of the mood on the day and what is in the fridge. Well occasionally I do plan the pasta dishes I make but those days are getting rarer.

On this particular day, I had the leftovers from this salad - the spinach, feta cheese and cherry tomatoes. I also had some asparagus lying at home. The thing I want to share here is that for a lot of the cooking (except baking) there are no fixed recipes, it is all about you knowing what you want from the food that you plan to cook and understanding the ingredients well enough to know how to combine them.

Another step I did differently in this dish was to sprinkle some herbs and pizza chilli on the pasta as soon as I had drained it. I have learnt this from a dear friend of mine and its amazing how well the herbs combine with the pasta with this simple step. The herbs cling to the pasta, giving flavor to every bite. The thing I love most about pizza chilli is that if sprinkled at the right stage, it makes the food spicy. Unlike Indian food where the level of spice stays with the entire dish in every bite, this one feels different because the spice can be felt in some bites but not in the other. And that is the surprise element I love the most!

Ingredients:

1 cup pasta (of your desired shape)

1 bunch baby asparagus

1/2 cup cherry tomatoes (cut into half)

1 1/2 cups baby spinach (washed & drained)

3/4 cup danish feta cheese(cut into small cubes)

3 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese

2 tsp extra virgin olive oil

2 tsp dried basil

1 tsp pizza chilli (crushed chilli flakes)

salt to taste

Method:

1. Boil the pasta as per instructions till al-dente. Drain the water and sprinkle the pasta with the dried basil and pizza chilli. Blanch the asparagus in boiling salted water for 2 minutes and then add to cold water to retain the color and stop cooking it. Drain and keep aside.

2. In a pan over low heat, add olive oil. Add the spinach and saute for a couple of minutes till it wilts slightly. Then add the asparagus and cherry tomatoes, cook for another couple of minutes.

3. Add salt to season. Then add the boiled pasta and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Once the pasta is heated through, check for seasoning and add as necessary. Sprinkle grated parmesan cheese on top.

4. Remove the pasta from the stove and add the feta cheese. Stir well and enjoy!