Not only is reheated pasta delicious and easy, it can also save your life. Well, sort of. The BBC's *Trust Me, I'm a Doctor's *latest discovery shows that reheating pasta transforms it from a carbohydrate to a resistant starch when it's cooked, cooled and re-heated. Basically this means that instead of the carbohydrates turning into sugars and increasing your body's glucose levels, it'll actually reduce your glucose levels by up to 50%. Oh, and further research by scientist Dr Denise Robertson shows that your body will treat it like a fibre rather than a carb, so you'll also absorb fewer calories.
So, next time you're complaining that you're eating Sunday night's pasta again, stop and think about the fact that no, you are not being lazy but rather, you're making a conscious decision to be fit and healthy. So yeah, leftovers, totally a thing.
Here are a few easy win pasta recipes from BBC Good Food to get you started on your eating-and-reheating journey, plus this banging dish from RecipesPlus.
Ingredients
350g pasta
1 carrot, roughly chopped
½ small onion, roughly chopped
½ stick celery, roughly chopped
6-8 ripe plum tomato, roughly chopped
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp red pesto
2 tbsp raspberry vinegar
grated parmesan and basil leaves, to serve
Method
Cook the pasta according to the pack instructions. Meanwhile, add everything else apart from the parmesan and basil to a food processor and whizz together until you get a smooth paste.
Tip into a saucepan and bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and leave to cook for 5 mins.
Drain the pasta, toss together with the tomato sauce, then serve with the parmesan and basil leaves.
Ingredients
400g spaghetti
100g SunBlush or sundried tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 tbsp tomato purée
handful olives, roughly chopped
2 tbsp oil from the tomatoes, or olive oil
50g vegetarian parmesan-style cheese, grated
50g pine nuts, toasted
Method
Boil the pasta according to pack instructions. Meanwhile, roughly chop the tomatoes. Drain the spaghetti, reserving a cupful of the cooking water in the bottom of the pan.
With the pan still on the heat, stir the tomatoes, tomato purée, olives, oil and half the cheese into the water and bring to the boil. Simmer for a few mins to make a loose sauce, then season to taste. Toss the pasta and pine nuts through the sauce and serve sprinkled with the rest of the cheese.
Ingredients
400g pasta shapes, try rigatoni, bows or macaroni
190g jar or fresh tub of basil pesto
500g tub half-fat crème fraîche
550g courgettes, grated
85g fresh breadcrumbs
olive oil, for drizzling
Method
Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Cook the pasta for 1-2 mins less than the pack instructions say, so that it has a little more bite. Reserve a ladle of cooking water.
Meanwhile, mix the pesto, crème fraîche and courgettes together. Add the pasta and stir well, adding a little of the reserved water to create a good sauce consistency. Taste and season.
Tip the pasta and sauce into a baking dish and scatter over the breadcrumbs. Drizzle with a little olive oil and bake for 20 mins until the topping is crisp.
#LeftoversFTW
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.