Penne Pasta with English Peas

Well, I guess its time someone stop being a slacker, and post some recipes or something. Once again, no pictures from me, mostly because I'm too lazy to stop every two seconds while I'm cooking and take pics and my little sister (who will be my photographer later this summer) is off gallivanting in Italy.

And since she's gone, I can make pretty much whatever I want for dinner and not worry about her silly eating habits (love you J.J.!). So, for dinner the other night, my mom and I teamed up. One the menu was pan-seared lamb chops, a nice salad (made with veggies from the Farmer's Market), and a pasta dish created by moi!

This week was pretty much the only week for English peas at the Farmer's Markets in Oklahoma (its flipping hot here, supposed to be 102 today, so they have a very short season, apparently). My mom bought a huge bag of shelled peas and left me to figure out a way to incorporate them into dinner. I thought, "Pasta dish!" and took it from there.

Ingredients:
About 2 cups shelled English peas
1/2 onion, chopped
About 1/2 cup of whole wheat penne pasta
1+ cups part-skim ricotta cheese
Chopped fresh mint (a few tablespoons)
Chopped fresh parsley (samesies)
Veggie broth
Salt and white pepper to taste

How I did it:
First, I washed the peas. This is a very important step, and must not be overlooked. Since the peas were locally grown and not shipped from South America, the chances that they carried e. coli were slim. I, however, do not like to chance these things. Then, I chopped half an onion. I added some olive oil to a hot pan, and sauteed the onions until they were translucent. Then, I added the peas. I smashed some of the peas as they were cooking, because I felt they needed to know who was boss.

While that was going in the pan, water was boiling for pasta. I cooked the pasta according to the directions on the package. Cooking pasta pretty much speaks for itself. When the pasta was done (al dente, please), I drained it and added it to the pan with the peas and onions. I let that cook for a few minutes more, while I readied the next step.

I took a little more than half a 16 oz container of ricotta and mixed it with all the fresh mint we had in the refrigerator. About two tablespoons? I don't measure, so I don't really know. Then I chopped up some parsley (about the same amount as the mint) and added that to the mix as well.

Next, I removed the pasta and peas from the flame. Then, I added the ricotta mixture, mixing it in to coat the pasta, and adding veggie broth to thin it out a little. I meant to save the pasta water, because I know its perfect for these things, but of course I forgot, so I thought peas are veggies, vegetable broth will do.

After this was all mixed in, I served immediately, as God intended pasta covered in ricotta cheese to be served. None of this "waiting around for it to congeal" nonsense.

The verdict: Yummy! Although, next time, I will either use less of the ricotta mixture, or more pasta, because I think it was a little too much. Still delicious, but it tried to hide the peas, who were supposed to be the star of the show, those poor little delicate guys with their week long growing season.

Maybe you all in more forgiving climates have a longer season for English peas. If so, I recommend buying them and eating them. Fresh peas are so much better than frozen, and lightyears better than canned. Also, eating local is the way to go. Farmer's markets are cheap, freah, and have produce of incredible quality. There is one every day of the week somewhere in Tulsa, so I'm pretty much addicted.

That's all for now, get to cooking, ladies!

With love and local-vores,

Andrea