Penne Pasta... recipe request?

[Brittany B]

so i am pretty clueless when it comes to cooking but i want to learn but i had this pasta dish in the cafeteria one day on the made fresh bar and it was delicious. They used penne noodles and it had some kind of spaghetti like sauce with it and they also threw in some spinnach leaves as it was all thrown into a pan to cook on a stove for a few minutes.

So my question is how do you go about making this?

What kind of sauce would be best?

What extra ingerdients like things to cook w/ such as vegetabe oil or garlic and parsley things of that nature?

Basically a how to would be appriciated. Remember I know nothing about cooking lol

[Heather C]

Perfect Penne Pasta
Ingredients
12 oz Penne Pasta
1 Medium or large jar of favorite spaghetti sauce
1 12 oz Container of low-fat ricotta cheese
8 oz Mozzarella cheese
1/2 bag Spinach leaves
Preparation

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Fill a stockpot with water and bring to a boil, add pasta reducing heat to medium.

While pasta is cooking, slice mozzarella thinly and set aside.

Cook pasta for 12-15 min, until almost done. Drain and return to stockpot.

Stir in jar of spaghetti sauce, ricotta and spinach (after removing any long stems). Stir well to combine ingredients and transfer to a large baking dish (9x13)

Top with mozzarella slices and cover loosely with foil

Place in oven and bake for 25 min, until inside is heated thoroughly

Remove foil and bake an additional 5 minutes. Tastes wonderful with garlic bread and a fresh salad.

[Emma]

you could easily omit the bacon (if you don't like it) and add a bit of a jarred tomato sauce.

Penne Pasta with Spinach and Bacon

1 (12 ounce) package penne pasta
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
6 slices bacon, chopped
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 bunch fresh spinach, rinsed and torn into bite-size pieces

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the penne pasta, and cook until tender, 8 to 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Place bacon in the skillet, and cook until browned and crisp. Add garlic, and cook for about 1 minute. Stir in the tomatoes, and cook until heated through.

Place the spinach into a colander, and drain the hot pasta over it so it is wilted. Transfer to a large serving bowl, and toss with the remaining olive oil, and the bacon and tomato mixture.