Mum's spaghetti with garlic and spearmint tomato sauce

Very simple pasta dish but so tasty! The secret is the good quality of olive oil... One of my mother's successful Lent dishes (omitting the cheese) but also a recipe that we cook at home very often regardless the season. Nothing fussy about it and with just a few simple ingredients you end up with a hearty meal

Ingredients (for 4 people):
1 tbsp of fresh (or dried) spearmint, finely chopped (or basil)
2-3 saffron threads (optional)
2 large cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
500 gr. of spaghetti
½ tea-cup of extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp of finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 vegetable stock cube
½ tea-cup of thick tomato "passata" (purée)
salt
pepper
plenty of grated Greek Kefalotyri cheese

Method:
Fill a large pot with plenty of water and add some salt. Boil the pasta on medium heat along with the saffron threads (if used), according to your preference. Drain the pasta in a colander and leave aside.

In the same pot warm the oil on medium heat and sauté the garlic for 1 minute, stirring with a wooden spatula. ***If you prefer you can discard the garlic at this point.
Add the tomato, the vegetable stock cube, the parsley and simmer the sauce on medium-low heat until it is lightly thickened.

Take the pot off the heat and throw in the pasta. Add the spearmint, season with plenty of pepper, stir well so the pasta is well coated by the sauce and cover the pot with the lid.

Leave the food to settle for 5 minutes and then serve in warm plates sprinkling on top with plenty of grated cheese.