We grew sweet peas for the first time this year. My little girls are just amazed to see the peas that normally come out of bag from the freezer coming out of a pod off a vine.
We recently harvested our crop, although we were a little late, so our peas were not quite as sweet and tender as they could have been. None the less, we made a yummy pasta dish from our peas that is also very good made with frozen peas. For my little girl with a milk allergy, we make one dish without ricotta for her. This is a very kid friendly dish. This recipe is slightly modified from “Real Simple”.
Pasta with Smashed Peas
- 1 pound fettuccine pasta
- 1 16-ounce package frozen peas, thawed or fresh if in season
- 3/4 cup ricotta
- 1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Cook the pasta according to the package directions. When you drain it, reserve about 1/3 cup of the pasta water. While the pasta is boiling, boil the peas for about 5-7 minutes until tender. Drain the peas and place in a food processor or blender reserving a handful of peas for garnish. Pulse until they are chopped but not pureed. Add ricotta, salt and pepper and pulse until blended. Transfer pea mixture to the pot you boiled the peas in. Add the 1/3 cup reserved pasta water to make it more like a sauce. To serve, place the pea sauce over the pasta, put a dollop of ricotta on top and garnish with whole peas and chives. Drizzle olive oil over the top and serve. Yummy!
