Pasta With Peas Ricotta Salata And Lemon Food

LEMON RICOTTA PASTA WITH FRESH PEAS

Steps:

• In a large, high sided skillet, toast the pine nuts over medium heat. Watch them carefully! Stir them constantly! These will burn in a hot minute and then you will be out 5 bucks worth of expensive nuts. Not that I'm speaking from experience...
• Once the pine nuts are toasty and golden and fragrant, remove to a plate and set aside.
• Fill the high sided skillet with water and add 1 tablespoon of salt (it should taste like seawater.) Bring to a boil over high heat.
• Add the pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, until al dente. It should only take about 10 minutes, but check the package. Don't overcook it. Nobody likes limp noodles.
• When the pasta is al dente, drain in a colander and return to the same pot. Drizzle with olive oil and stir.
• Meanwhile, make the ricotta pea sauce. In a food processor or blender, add garlic and a bunch of parsley*. I didn't measure this, just throw in what looks like it will be 1/3 cup. Add oregano and thyme, and pulse or blend until the parsley and garlic are finely chopped.
• Add 1 and 1/2 cups peas, the ricotta, the lemon zest and juice, 1/4 cup olive oil, 2 teaspoons kosher salt (see note), and black pepper. Pulse until the mixture comes together but still has some texture to it, it shouldn't be completely smooth.
• Add the ricotta mixture to the pasta and stir it up. Add the remaining cup of peas.
• Add 1/2 cup grated Parmesan and a few drizzles of olive oil. You can add this to the pot or over each individual serving.
• If you are serving adults, add a few shakes of crushed red pepper, or if you are serving kids leave it out (or just add a little).
• Top each serving with some toasted pine nuts.

PASTA WITH FRESH HERBS, LEMON AND PEAS

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Meanwhile, in a large bowl or pasta bowl, combine the herbs, lemon zest, garlic, lemon juice and olive oil.
• When the water comes to a boil, salt generously and add the pasta. A few minutes before the pasta is done, add the peas to the water. When the pasta is just about al dente, remove a half cup of the cooking water and add to the bowl with the herbs. Drain the pasta and peas, toss with the herb mixture and the cheese, and serve.

PASTA WITH LEMON, HERBS AND RICOTTA SALATA

Steps:

• Fill a large pot with water and add enough salt so that you can taste it. Bring to a boil. Pour the chicken broth into a small saucepan, drop in the garlic and bring to a boil. Reduce by half. Remove garlic. Shut off the heat; add the lemon zest and juice. Season to taste. It should be highly seasoned because this will be the sauce for the pasta. Keep warm. Place 4 serving bowls in a low oven.
• When the water comes to a boil, add the pasta and cook until al dente. After five minutes, ladle out about 1 cup of the cooking water and reserve. Drain the pasta, shake, then return it to the pot. Place over low heat and pour in the chicken broth. Sprinkle in the mint, marjoram and fennel and a little olive oil. Stir. The pasta should be brothy and lemony. Add some of the reserved cooking water, salt and more lemon juice, if needed.
• Spoon into bowls so that the pasta is lying in a bit of broth. Crumble the ricotta over top, sprinkle with a dash more oil and grind pepper over the top. Serve.

GARDEN PASTA WITH LEMON RICOTTA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook as the label directs, adding the snap peas during the last 2 minutes. Reserve 1/2 cup cooking water, then drain the pasta and peas.
• Meanwhile, heat 3 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper; cook until the garlic is softened, about 1 minute. Add the radishes and bell pepper; cook, stirring, until softened, about 2 minutes. Add half of the reserved pasta cooking water and cook until the vegetables are tender, 2 more minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
• Add the pasta and snap peas to the skillet along with the remaining 3 tablespoons butter, the parmesan and all but a few tablespoons of the herbs; toss to coat, adding enough of the reserved pasta cooking water to loosen. Season with salt and pepper.
• Combine the ricotta, 1 tablespoon water, the lemon zest and a pinch of salt in a bowl. Top each serving with the lemon ricotta and the remaining herbs.

LEMON RICOTTA PASTA WITH VEGETABLES

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add penne and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender yet firm to the bite, about 11 minutes.
• Meanwhile, melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add mushrooms, onion, bell pepper, and garlic; saute until softened, 5 to 10 minutes. Season with salt, pepper, 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning, and crushed red chili pepper. Add spinach and tomato towards the end of the saute process and cook until spinach has wilted.
• Season ricotta cheese with more Italian seasoning, garlic powder, and onion powder. Stir seasoned ricotta cheese into the vegetable mixture with Parmesan cheese, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Heat over medium-high heat until heated all the way through, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Plate and top with mozzarella.

SPAGHETTI WITH LEMON, PARMESAN & PEAS

Steps:

• Bring a large pan of lightly salted water to the boil. Feed in the spaghetti and cook for about 10-12 minutes, until just tender. (Check the pack instructions for timings - 'quick cook' spaghetti takes only 3 minutes.) Add the peas for the last 2-3 minutes.
• At the same time, heat the olive oil in a saucepan and fry the onion gently until softened and cooked, but not brown. Stir in the soft cheese and warm it through, adding 3 tbsp of the pasta cooking water to thin it down. Now stir in the lemon zest and 2 tbsp of the Parmesan.
• Drain the spaghetti and peas really well, return them to the pan and gently stir in the sauce. Season with salt and pepper, then pile it into 2 serving bowls. Sprinkle the parsley and the remaining Parmesan over the top and serve right away, with a mixed leaf salad.

PASTA WITH PEAS, RICOTTA SALATA, AND LEMON

Steps:

• Fill a 4-quart kettle three fourths full with salted water and bring to a boil for pasta and peas.
• Tear basil into bite-size pieces and break ricotta salata into about 1/2-inch-thick pieces. Into a large bowl finely grate zest from lemon and squeeze enough juice to measure 1 tablespoon. Add basil, cheese, and oil. Cook pasta in boiling water until almost al dente. Stir in peas and continue to cook until pasta is al dente and peas are tender. Drain pasta and peas well. Add pasta and peas to bowl and toss to combine. Season pasta with salt and pepper and sprinkle with tarragon.