5 or 6 ripe sweet plum tomatoes
3-4 oz black olives (not pitted)
4-6 cloves garlic
small bunch of watercress or rocket (arugula)
1 oz pine nuts
about 100g penne per person
the best olive oil you've got
fresh parmesan
The amounts of this depend on how many are eating--this will do for about four, but scale up as needed. This is a very quick and easy meal to throw together.
Bring a large pan of water to the boil, with about one litre of water for every 100g of pasta, with a pinch of salt and a dribble of oil. When the water hits a rolling boil, add the pasta and cook till al dente.
Dice the tomatoes, skinning and seeding them if you can be bothered and put them in a large bowl. Shred the watercress or rocket, and add to the tomatoes, with the pine nuts and olives.
While the pasta is cooking, slice the garlic, and fry in a little olive oil until it turns golden but not brown. Drain and pat dry, and add them to the bowl.
Drain the pasta well, and stir in well with everything else. Add thin slices of parmesan (a vegetable peeler is a good thing to use for this). Add black pepper and more olive oil to taste.