Cooking with olives!

I love olives, but as I am currently broke they somehow seem like a bit of a luxury today if all I am going to do is snack on them.

So today I came up with the perfect excuse to buy a jar of olives: a fantastic recipe that had olives in it. Martha's Tomato and Olive Penne was surprisingly flavorful given the limited ingredients in the recipe. I used whole wheat pasta, so overall this was really healthy (and low in carbs!).

Ingredients

• Salt and pepper
• 1 pound penne, or other short pasta
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 2/3 pound (2 cups) cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional)
• 1/4 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and sliced
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving

Directions

1. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook penne according to package instructions until al dente, about 13 minutes. Drain.
   
2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic, and cook, stirring, until just golden, about 1 minute. Add cherry tomatoes, oregano, crushed red pepper, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Reduce heat to low, and cook, stirring, until tomato juices run, about 3 minutes.
   
3. Add penne, olives, parsley, and 1/4 cup Parmesan to the skillet and toss to combine. Serve with more cheese if desired.
   
   From: http://www.marthastewart.com/341000/tomato-and-olive-penne