… although technically it’s leftovers from last night. But that’s how pasta al forno works.

Pasta al forno means, more or less, ‘pasta cooked in the oven’ and that’s all it really is. It’s a good way to use up pre-cooked pasta and sauce (although tomato-based ones such as bolognaise work best; cream ones don’t re-cook so well) or you can make it ‘fresh’, which is what I did last night.

Just mix the cooked pasta with the sauce (which can be cold) - don’t drown the pasta in sauce though (bad British/Irish habit, that) - and sprinkle cheese on top. Bung it in the oven at a medium-high temperature and cook until the cheese has gone brown and the top layer of pasta is ever-so-slightly crunchy.

I tend to make pasta al forno with one of my favourite pasta recipes - pasta alla Antonella, so named by me for the Italian friend who taught me the combination. Simply combine any of the following with pasta and a tomato-based sauce, and either eat straight away (with heated-up sauce) or use for pasta al forno:

• chopped ham or bacon
• chopped salami/pepperoni/chorizo
• chopped hard-boiled egg (I cheat by breaking the egg into a shallow bowl of water, and cooking it in the microwave on medium)
• chopped mushrooms - if putting straight in the oven, these don’t need to be cooked first
• sliced black olives
• chopped or grated cheese, any sort - very necessary
• parmesan and black pepper to taste (you can always add more)

Of course, you can add just about anything else you like. Just make sure that you use cheese…