Dinner tonight: White clam linguine and sweet-and-tangy angel hair pasta

On a busy weeknight, a plate of pasta is the perfect meal to make. But you can make it even better with a few more steps and ingredients.

A white clam sauce is really hard to make from scratch, due to all the scrubbing and shucking involved. To the rescue come canned chopped clams, which not only eliminate 95 per cent of the work but also add great flavour both from the clams themselves and the juice in which they're packed.

Preparation time 10 minutes 

Cooking time 15 minutes 

Serves 4

• 350 g (12 oz) linguine
• 30 ml (2 tbsp) extra-virgin olive oil
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 bottle (225 g/8 oz) clam juice
• 2 cans (185/6 1/2 oz each) chopped clams, drained and liquid reserved
• 125 ml (1/2 c) heavy cream
• 30 ml (2 tbsp) fresh lemon juice
• 125 ml (1/2 c) chopped fresh parsley
• 0.5 ml (1/8 tsp) crushed red-pepper flakes
• 2 ml (1/2 tsp) salt
• 1 ml (1/4 tsp) freshly ground black pepper

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook according to the package directions. Drain.
2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a medium pot over medium-high heat. Stir in the garlic and cook until lightly golden, one to two minutes.
3. Stir in the clam juice, reserved clam liquid, cream, lemon juice, parsley, pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until very slightly thickened, eight to 10 minutes.
4. Stir in the clams and cook until hot, about one minute. In a large bowl, toss the ­linguine and clam sauce.

For a dish that packs a little more flavour, boil the heavy cream in a small pot over medium heat until reduced by half before adding it to the sauce.

Pasta with butter and garlic is about as basic as you can get. This rendition of the Italian classic includes honey for a delightfully sweet touch.

Preparation time 5 minutes 

Cooking time 15 minutes

Serves 8

• 500 g (1 lb) angel hair pasta
• 2 to 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 115 g (1/2 c) unsalted butter
• 50 ml (1/4 c) honey
• 5 ml (1 tsp) dried basil
• 5 ml (1 tsp) dried thyme
• 25 g (1/4 c) grated Parmesan cheese

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook according to the package directions.
2. Meanwhile, in a large nonstick skillet, sauté the garlic in the butter, then stir in the honey, basil and thyme.
3. Drain the pasta, add it to the garlic mixture and toss to coat.
4. Sprinkle with Parmesan before serving.

To make this dish more substantial, sauté 225 grams (eight ounces) chicken thighs cut into strips in the butter before adding the garlic. Top with 110 grams (four ounces) thinly sliced prosciutto.

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