A couple of cuttings

Took a half dozen cuttings of thyme and three starts of sage today. We shall see how they turn out.

But today is a cooking report kind of day. I totally miss a Chicago restaurant today for a particular dish of penne pasta, asparagus, and prochitto in a creamy tomato sauce.
Well, don't have any of that in the house, so I'm using rigatoni, frozen mixed cauli, broc, and carrot, a pound of bacon, and a couple cans of diced tomatoes.

Sizzled up the bacon in a small dice. Whacked up three fat garlic cloves into a very rough dice, and tossed them in after the bacon was crispy. Let that start getting smelling of garlic in the air and drained the two cans of diced toms into it. Then I dumped in a whole ton of herbals. A small palmfull each of dried onion, parsley, and Italian herb mix. A Tablespoon of garlic powder, and about half that of garlic salt.
I tend to sub garlic salt for straight salt in sauces like this. Hubby picked up a bucket of the stuff and so I try to use it as I can instead of salt for boiling pasta. Once that container is empty and washed out, it will become the new container for homemade dried chopped garlic.

Anywho, the tomato sauce is tightening up, so it's time to kick up the heat under the pasta water and lower the heat under the sauce and start watching it.

Had enough base to split half off for the freezer. Added dairy to the other half, tossed in the pasta with a bunch of Parmesan... yum!