Monique's Long Macaroni

Over at the kawaii-radio forums we did a secret santa this year. My secret santa was lovely enough to send me the makings of a *very* wonderful pasta casserole from Canada! Now, the particular type of pasta used is a bucatini – a long, tube shaped pasta with a hole in the center. I haven’t been able to find it in my local supermarkets, but I have found it in an Amazon.com search; I’m sure that you can substitute with a thicker-type pasta! This has quickly become a favourite in our house and amongst our friends.

540 mL Tomato Juice

540 mL Diced Tomatoes

3 cloves of Garlic (or 3 tsp of minced garlic)

1 pound Bucatini (or other thick pasta)

3/4 pound mild shredded Cheddar

1/4 pound sharp shredded Cheddar

1 TBSP Basil

1 TBSP Oregano

1 TBSP Parsley

1 TBSP Butter

1 tsp Sugar

1 tsp Olive Oil

Salt & Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350*F.

Put water on to boil in a large pot. In a skillet, combine garlic, spices, sugar, and olive oil over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add entire can of diced tomatoes and 1/4 cup of the tomato juice. By this time, your water should be boiling so add your pasta and let cook until slightly firm. Let the tomatoes simmer until the pasta is done.

In a pyrex baking dish, add pasta and dot with butter. Season with salt and pepper. Add all of the mild cheddar cheese, and then add the sauce you created. Add the remaining tomato juice, and top with the sharp cheddar.

Bake for 30 – 45 minutes. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving. Serves ~12.

[Via http://breadanbutter.wordpress.com]