The jar holds all the richness you need: tomato, cheese, butter, and garlic. Boil pasta, warm the sauce, and finish with a scatter of fresh bread crumbs toasted in olive oil until golden. Dinner takes twenty minutes.

Serves 2. 20 minutes, 15 at the stove.

About 740 calories a serving, 32 g protein, 108 g carbohydrate, 19 g fat. From USDA figures for 100% of the ingredients; amounts are the recipe's.

Cook mode

1. Tear 2 slices of bread into rough pieces and pulse in a food processor until you have coarse crumbs, or chop by hand. Set a large pot of salted water over high heat.
2. While the water heats, warm 3 tablespoons olive oil in a wide pan over medium heat. Add the bread crumbs and stir often until golden and fragrant, about 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, then transfer to a plate.4 min
3. Salt the boiling water and add 8 oz pasta. Cook until just al dente, stirring once. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water before draining.
4. Pour the entire jar of sauce into the wide pan over medium heat and warm, stirring gently, until it bubbles at the edge, about 3 minutes. Add the hot pasta and 1/4 cup pasta water. Toss to coat, adding more water if it seems dry; the sauce should cling to each strand without pooling.3 min
5. Divide between two plates, top each with half the toasted bread crumbs, and finish with a crack of fresh pepper.

Note Swap the bread crumbs for toasted panko if you have it. Leftovers keep four days in the fridge; reheat gently with a splash of water. Serve with a simple green salad and a glass of wine on the side.