Rigatoni with parma ham and tomatoes

I love it when you happen to have the ingredients at hand to make a recipe you have just found. This was another recipe which I came across while searching on the good food website tonight.  I used penne pasta instead of rigatoni, and although the recipe was for 2 servings, I just added more pasta to serve 4.  I also had two halves of pepper left over from last nights meal, which I sliced and added them at the point of frying the tomatoes. We all really enjoyed this dish and I'll definitely do it again. The more horrible the weather gets the more summery the dishes become. 


Ingredients

Serves 2
150g rigatoni
oil for frying
2 garlic cloves, gently bashed but kept whole
8 slices Parma ham, roughly torn
300g cherry tomatoes, quartered
125g mozzarella, chopped
basil leaves to decorate

Method
Cook the pasta according to pack instructions. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a frying pan and cook the garlic and Parma ham gently for 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook until they soften and release their juices.
Drain the pasta, keeping a little of the water back and mix with the tomatoes, removing the garlic. Scatter with the mozzarella and basil.

A lovely view from the window last night, the cows have come home.