Fun Alphabet Pasta 趣味字母面条

I came across organic alphabet pasta in the supermarket and just couldn't resist buying it for Ethan, he was 2 years old then. Instead of canned pasta sauce, I made everything from scratch and he absolutely loved it! We had a whole lots of fun hunting for alphabets during his meal time :)

When having friends and their kiddos come over for gathering, I'll cook about 1.5 cup of this pasta and all the kids enjoyed it.

Preparation Time: 10min
Cooking Time: 20min
Serving: 2 kiddos


Ingredients

A) For Pasta
1/2 cup organic Alphabet pasta

B) for Pasta Sauce
1/2 canned tuna flakes in water (discard the water), or a palm size of dory / salmon fillet.
1 whole XL size tomato, finely chopped (or substitute with 1/2 canned tomato puree)
6 baby carrots (or 1/2 a normal carrots, roughly chopped)
2 gloves of garlic, finely chopped
A pinch of brown sugar
Few leaved of fresh basil, finely chopped (optional, not all little one likes herbs due to the strong scent)

Step-by-Step Guides
1. Boil a pot of water, add the pasta & baby carrots once the water boils. Cook the pasta & baby carrots according to the cooking time indicated on the packaging (usually between 7min-13min).
2. Once cooked, drain the excess water using a strainer. Put the pasta & carrots aside.
3. Heat up a spoonful of olive oil in a frying pan, sauté the garlic until it turns light brown.
4. Add chopped tomatoes into the pan, add some water and let it shimmers on medium heat for about 5min.
5. Add tuna flakes & stir for about 5min.
6. Seasoned with salt and brown sugar according to your liking (sugar not required if you are using canned tomato puree, I did not add any salt for my little one's pasta)
7. Toss in the cooked pasta & baby carrots, mix evenly.
8. Add the fresh basil and mix well. Once the sauce is thicken, your pasta is done!


Useful Tips!
1. You may add flavor to the pasta by sprinkling some bacon chips or parmesan cheese on top. Just be sure your kiddo is not allergic to cheese.
2. Most little ones may not like herbs, so you may leave it out or avoid herbs with strong aroma such as rosemary.
3. If you are not serving the pasta right away, let the sauce be more watery so it will not be too dry when served later.
4. If you are feeding the pasta to younger baby, you shall blend the tomatoes and carrots until you get a fine mushy paste texture before cooking them with the pasta