Artichoke capers and penne

Home alone in this miserable winter, feeling dejected from the day, I had to pamper myself. I quickly rummaged through the fridge for my favorite Italian vegetable combination - found some olive oil soaked artichokes, firm mushrooms, potent garlic, tangy capers and sweet onion.

I set my Penne boiling with some salt and olive oil.

In another pot, I heated a dash of extra virgin olive oil and threw in all the above vegetables chopped chunky. I sauteed them for 4-5mins on high, then added in the al dente Penne, sea salt, paprika, and fresh ground pepper. After the vegetables and pasta were mixed for another 1-2mins, I added the pasta sauce (1/4 of the bottle in the picture), rinsed out the bottle with more water and lid the pasta to cook for 3-4mins.

Pasta now dry and soaked with all the yummy flavor was ready for garnish - flat fresh parsley and sun-dried tomato cheese. I got me a glass of wine and sat to enjoy a movie. How a good meal can cheer you up!