Tuna and Tomato Pasta: $1.46 per serving or less!

(photo credit:  Kana Okada)

We took a few weeks off, but the recipes from the $10 Spot section of Every Day With Rachael Ray  are back!  We tried this one last night.  Just wait 'til you see the cost breakdown!

Serves:  4     Prep Time:  10 minutes    Cook Time:  25 minutes

Ingredients: 

•  
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 cloves garlic, chopped 
  • 1 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley 
  • One 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes 
  • Salt and pepper 
  • 4 tablespoons butter 
  • One 6-ounce can white tuna in olive oil, drained 
  • One 1-pound box medium pasta shells
      

Directions:
 
1. In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add 2 tablespoons parsley and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Cook over low heat until the sauce thickens, about 20 minutes. Whisk in the butter, then stir in the tuna.

2. Meanwhile, in a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the pasta until al dente; drain. Add the pasta to the tuna sauce and stir in threequarters of the remaining parsley; season with salt and pepper. Top with the remaining parsley.

And now the cost breakdown: 

•  
  •  
    • Extra Virgin Olive Oil  $0.30
    • Garlic  $0.14
    • Parsley $0.25
    • Crushed Tomatoes  $2.19
    • Butter $0.38
    • Canned Tuna $1.09
    • Pasta  $1.49
• Total cost:  $5.84 ($1.46/serving)

If you are a regular reader of this site, you know that we can do this much cheaper...just wait for a Canned Food sale at your local market and you can probably get a 28-ounce can of tomatoes for $1.  As for the pasta?  I haven't paid more the $.50 for a box of regular pasta in years!  With some careful shopping, this can be just as frugal of a recipe as rice & beans!

Thanks to the Rachael Ray people for wanting to keep the recipes going on this site.  Be sure to check out the Every Day With Rachael Ray site for more great recipes.  Wanna know some of my favorites? 

Cornbread with Honey Butter (don't have buttermilk?  Here's an easy substitution!)

Ham, Egg & Cheese Bake (my "meat & potatoes husband" just loves this one!)

Asparagus Panini (with Asparagus being ridiculously cheap at Genuardi's this week, this was my lunch on Saturday and Sunday!)