Recipes for Leftover Pasta

When I make pasta, I sometimes make extra so that I can have an easy meal the next day. Most pasta with sauce reheats very well in the microwave. However, there are those times when you want the leftovers to be a little different than the original dish. Listed below are several ideas to accomplish that.

• Soup - Use homemade or low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth as a soup base. Add leftover Pasta with Cooked Greens or similar pasta dish. Add seasonings as needed. You now have a pasta soup with greens. Pass grated Parmesan cheese for a garnish. As happens occasionally, I make something like this and end up with new leftovers. To solve that problem, one time I added some leftover Southern Black-Eyed Peas and additional broth to make enough for the third night. It was every bit as good as the first leftover soup.
  
  For a different kind of soup made with leftover pasta with a tomato sauce, such as the rigatoni with homemade marinara sauce in the similar and related recipes, start with chicken or vegetable broth. Add some canned whole tomatoes, crushed with their juices. Cook with your choice of frozen vegetables. When the vegetables are tender, add the leftover pasta and heat. You just made a quick and easy minestrone soup.
  
  
• Fried Spaghetti - This idea comes from Shirley Boyle. Shirley writes: "This is something my family loves and looks forward to every time I make homemade spaghetti with sauce. I fry it the next night. Just take a frying pan, melt enough butter to coat the spaghetti, which is coated with sauce, and fry until warmed through. Serve with garlic bread and a salad. It is better than the night before!"
  
  
• New Pasta Dish - For sauces that do not use tomatoes, such as the pasta with chicken and asparagus in the similar and related recipes, add some cherry tomatoes or drained, diced tomatoes when reheating to stretch the leftovers and to present a completely different pasta dish.
  
  
• Pasta Salad - Add chopped fresh tomatoes to leftover pasta with a sauce that does not contain tomatoes and serve at room temperature for an easy pasta salad.
  
  
• Pasta Crisps - If you have leftover cooked pasta that has not been sauced, try making Pasta Crisps. They make a quick, easy and crunchy side dish that goes well with sandwiches in place of the usual chips or fries.