Friday, July 13, 2007

Penne Pasta in a Garlic Cream Sauce with Peas

I needed to whip up something fast and easy tonight since we spent a few hours at happy hour. Pasta is always good for soaking up the alcohol, so it was the perfect option for tonight's dinner.

Ingredients

- 8 oz penne pasta
- 4 cloves garlic, pressed (I usually like to chop it.. chopping garlic can be very therapeutic, but not a good idea after a few beers at happy hour and then a bottle of wine on the deck)
- 1 cup light cream
- about 1/4 c (maybe more?) grated asiago cheese
- a few shakes of red pepper flakes
- 1 shake of cayenne pepper (optional, but we like heat in our kitchen)
- 2 tbsp dry white wine
- 1/2-1 cup frozen peas
- Option: sliced prosciutto (I would have used it if Jon liked it. Next time he's away I'll have to make this dish with prosciutto)


How I Cooked It...
- Cook pasta til al dente; set aside
- While the pasta is cooking, heat about 1 tbsp olive oil in a large pan. Add red pepper flakes and garlic*, saute
* Some of my garlic toasted in the oil while I was taking a sip of wine, but it ended up being a good thing. It gave a few different garlic flavors to the dish so I'd definitely do it again, but on purpose next time
- Add white wine and stir
- Add cream and let simmer for about 5 minutes until it is lightly bubbling
- Add the peas and cheese, stir until slightly thickened. If using proscuitto, add it now.
- Add the pasta and toss. Top with some salt if needed.

This dinner was delicious!! Quick and easy, and the perfect thing after a few drinks at the bar.

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4 comments:

  1. this looks REALLY good...i've been in search of a good garlic cream sauce, i'm going to try this one. this would be easy to build off of...add grilled shrimp, chicken or other veggies.

    thanks.

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  2. that may not be the best picture,but having had that before it sure does look good.

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  3. california girl, I recently moved to Bangkok Thailand. It has been hard to remember some of the favorites from growing up...sometimes you need a foreighn dish. I think this sauce will go great with Ginooche's.

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  4. This was AWESOME!!! I made it for myself last night for dinner. So quick and easy with ingredients I had on hand. I used tortellini instead of the penne, Riesling for the white wine and added prosciutoo. SO GOOD!!!

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