Still on a campaign not to stock the fridge with much of anything, I made a really good dinner tonight out of stuff that was hanging around: a half box of rotini, some milk, some cheese. Enough green and growing things to make a nice salad.

The Recipe

• 2 tbs butter
• 2 tbs flour
• 1/2 medium onion, chopped
• 1 1/2 cups 2% milk
• 4 oz sharp cheddar, grated
• 4 oz pepper jack cheese, grated
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley
• 1/2 lb pasta (I used rotini — you use whatever you like, but short tubular or curly pastas work best with this)

Spray a baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. While the pasta boils, make the cheese sauce.

Melt butter over medium heat. Add onion, cook until soft, stirring frequently. Add flour and stir thoroughly with whisk; cook for a couple of minutes. Add milk, whisking constantly. Continue to whisk until sauce thickens and bubbles. Remove from heat, season to taste with salt and pepper. Add grated cheeses, whisking until cheese melts.

Drain pasta and combine with sauce. Pour into baking dish, and bake for 20 minutes or so, until pasta is browned a bit on top and sauce is bubbling.

I served this with a salad made of greens dressed with olive oil and balsamic vinegar, yellow and red pepper strips, and kalamata olives.

Nice dinner, and the fridge is really almost empty now. One more night to go before vacation.