Pasta

Use drumsticks or thighs and sun-dried tomatoes which omits the need to cook a tomato sauce, without sacrificing any of the flavour.

You could use macaroni instead of risoni, if preferred. For extra flavour, add spices such as ground cumin or fennel. Note

They don't call it a classic for nothing. This Italian spaghetti dish is so effortless and simple yet so delicious you'll soon see why it's such a staple.

This sauce goes well with any long pasta. You can use basil or chives instead of parsley. Replace tuna with canned salmon. Use a vegetable peeler to cut zucchini into thin slices. Try yellow zucchini instead of squash. This recipe is best made close to serving time. Note

Packed full of delicious flavours and topped with an oozy cheese sauce, this macaroni and bolognese pasta bake is perfect for a hungry family. Serve straight from the pan as a warming Winter dinner.

This Italian dish is quick to whip up but with proscuitto, zucchini, shaved parmesan and tender pasta you'll be savouring every mouthful.

We used a mixture of cooked prawns, cooked flaked salmon and marinated mussel meat for this cold seafood salad. You could also used smoked or canned salmon.

For added flavour, add a squeeze of lemon juice to your seafood pasta. Hot-smoked salmon steaks are available in the ready-to-eat section of the supermarket fridge. Note

Accompany this with leafy salad. Note

Turkey mince is learner than regular beef or pork mince. To hide added vegetables from the kids, grate vegies rather than chopping them. Add chopped basil for green goodness and flavour. Note

Really ripe tomatoes and crisp, salty prosciutto make this pasta salad a sensational dish. Store tomatoes at room temperature, rather than in the fridge, which will alter the texture and spoil the flavour. To accelerate ripening, place in a paper bag with a ripe banana.

More than just fancy macaroni cheese, this baked three cheese pasta is cheesy, creamy and crunchy on top. Ok, maybe it is a fancy macaroni cheese, but it's a great one.

This recipe utilises the classic Italian technique of removing sausage meat from the casing before cooking. It makes for a tasty, succulent pasta with sausage meat in a savoury tomato sauce.

Simple and delicious, this pasta dish can be on the dinner table in just half an hour. Don't be frightened of the anchovies; topped with the garlic breadcrumbs, they give a wonderful flavour.

This fresh tomato and chilli pasta is the perfect midweek family meal that will satisfy everyone. Serve alongside some crusty garlic bread and the kids will be at the table before you can say "dinner's ready!"

The chilli pancetta gives the linguine a lovely spicy kick. If you can't find it, use regular pancetta and add chilli to taste. Just a short time in the pan will be enough for the asparagus to add a touch of crunchy texture.

If you're looking for the perfect quick and easy mid-week dinner, you've found it. Simple, tasty and ready in a flash, this asparagus, bacon and cheese pasta will become a go-to recipe.

Like a spaghetti pie with an eggplant, parmesan and breadcrumb crust, this Sicilian spaghetti is rich, earthy and very satisfying. Perfect for filling up on a cold evening or for lunch after a stiff weekend walk.

This tagliatelle pasta with broccoli and anchovies is simple and delicious. Don't let the family be put off by the addition of anchovies, they leave no overwhelming fishy taste, just a delicious savoury flavour.

Agnolotti is a type of filled pasta, similar to ravioli but smaller. We've teamed a ricotta and spinach version with a creamy fennel sauce here for a perfectly hearty and easy meat-free meal.

For a milder pesto, substitute baby spinach leaves for rocket. Note

This is one of my all-time favourite pastas. I know it looks like a lot of anchovies, but trust me and cook them down slowly. This could well become your favourite pasta, too.

There is only one thing that needs to be said here - my mum makes the best spaghetti bolognese in the world! If there's a guaranteed go-to dinner that will please young and old, this is it.

Tasty pork and fennel sausages make a fabulous base for this pasta topping. You can stir through a small tub of ricotta to add creaminess if you like.

A great way to use up left-over cooked pasta, this chicken and asparagus pasta salad is simple, tasty and quick to make. You can use most pasta varieties.

Add some thinly sliced red chilli for a spicy version of this soup, if you like. This is a last minute soup, it doesn’t freeze well. The pasta will become soggy as it absorbs more liquid and the buk choy will discolour. Note

Kangaroo meat is lean and healthy. High in protein and iron and low in fat, kangaroo meat is a great alternative to more popular red meats. It is the ultimate free-range, organic meat containing no chemicals or antibiotics.

Farfalle is a bow-tie shaped short pasta; sometimes known as butterfly pasta. It looks very pretty as part of a pasta salad

Quick, easy and totally delicious, this chilli prawn linguine will quickly become a family dinner favourite.

Cannelloni is a delicious stuffed Italian pasta, which we've filled with a flavoursome ricotta, spinach and herb mix in this recipe. Serve the pasta topped with a fragrant tomato sauce and oozy melted cheese.

This prosciutto and pea gratin is like a gourmet macaroni cheese and is bound to be a hit with all the family.

A spicy and light pasta dish with wide ribbons of pappardelle, the sweet and robust flavour of capsicum and finished with creamy ricotta; a perfect vegetarian family meal. Serve with crusty garlic bread.

Rich with capsicum, tomato and anchovies, this simple pasta is a great go-to recipe when you need dinner in a hurry.

Dish up this classic kids' favourite for dinner and watch them devour it. Spaghetti and meatballs is well loved for good reason.

Seafood marinara mix is widely available and very convenient, although you could experiment with all of your favourite seafood morsels.

Tarts can be made one day ahead; store, in a single layer, in an airtight container. The stars of the day can act all grown-up like their favourite celebrity with a flute of pink fizz in one hand and a canapé in the other. As well, there’s the kids’ all-time favourite jam tarts made into […]

Also known as capelli d’angelo, angel hair is sold as small, circular nests of very fine, delicate pasta strands; its cooking time is minimal because of its extremely thin nature.

The stem of the zucchini is the baby zucchini attached to its flower. Note

if you can’t find orecchiette pasta, replace it with penne. Note

Super simple and seriously tasty, this spaghetti with anchovies, olives and rocket is the ideal mid-week dinner.

Toss the pasta through the sauce just before serving, as it will soak up all the sauce if tossed too early. Either swiss brown, flat or oyster mushrooms can be used instead of the button mushrooms.

Orzo is a rice-shaped pasta available from Greek delicatessens and specialty food stores; if unavailable, use risoni. To save time, you can buy roasted capsicum pieces from the deli. Note

Chicken, spinach and ricotta cannelloni makes a great weekend lunch to share. A piping bag filled with the chicken mixture will make filling the cannelloni tubes really easy.

Full of flavour and super quick to put together, this curried macaroni tuna & bean salad makes a great packed lunch as well.

Rich bolognese sauce, replete with sausage, pork and veal, is perfectly paired with al dente rigatoni tubes.

The mealy of Mediterranean flavours make this an incredibly fresh and satisfying dish.

Some nights you just feel like something simple, satisfying and full of clear, bright flavours. This pasta with capers and anchovies fits the bill.

Boscaiola sauce is a creamy mushroom and bacon sauce that is perfect for a pasta dish designed to tempt even the fussiest of palates. It's great served on orecchiette as the sauce clings to the big pasta ears, making every mouthful delicious.

Warm your body and soul with this hearty veal stroganoff. Complete with soft, buttered noodles, it makes the ultimate comfort food on a cool evening.

This classic Italian dish is pure comfort food with layers upon layers of melted cheese, pasta and hearty beef mince.

This fresh, protein-packed pasta with zucchini, tomato and ricotta is an easy, tasty mid-week dinner that makes it easy to stick to your meat-free quotient.

Spaghettini is just spaghetti cut finer, and it makes a wonderful base for this vibrant freshly made pesto sauce. The more strands of pesto-coated pasta there are in every mouthful, the better.

Garganelli are little pasta squares rolled into a tube, which can be ridged or smooth. We chose ridged garganelli for this tomato, olive and anchovy pasta as the little ridges help the sauce cling to each piece.

Olives, artichokes, red onion and basil make sure this warm gnocchi salad is just bursting with colour and flavour. It makes a great lunch, starter or light dinner.

You'll want to use the ripest tomatoes you can find to help give this fresh and yummy tuna, chilli and tomato spaghetti a real boost in the flavour department.

to freeze Complete recipe to the end of step 3. Cool sauce to room temperature. Transfer to an airtight container. Label, date and freeze for up to three months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Reheat in a saucepan and continue from step 4. Stir in ⅓ cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves just before serving, […]

Serve accompanied with asparagus or broccoli or a green leafy salad, if liked. You can use red salmon or canned tuna if you like. The recipe can be made to the end of step 4 several hours ahead. From cold, bake covered at 200°C for 30 minutes or until heated through then uncover and bake […]

This recipe is not suitable to freeze. Note

Farfalle is a short, rather sturdy butterfly-shaped pasta that is also known as “bow-ties”. It is good for a dish such as this because the folds and crinkles of each piece help capture the pesto and hold the other ingredients. Replace the farfalle with penne or small shells if you wish. Note

Any similar-sized pasta shape such as casarecce, rigatoni or penne would be suitable for this dish. Note

Rigatoni, a ridged, tube-shaped pasta, is ideal for baked dishes because it is wide and the hearty fillings cling to the indentations around the edges. Note

We cooked this recipe in two ovenproof dishes,­ each dish will serve three. We have deliberately used dried, uncooked pasta in this dish. The texture of the final dish is a little chewy, but still tender. Note

Rich and warm, with a nice kick from the chilli.