Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Monday Night Pesto Pasta Carbonara


On Monday night I didn't have anything planned to eat, but we needed a break from Thanksgiving leftovers and I had a bunch of random leftover bits in the fridge taking up space, so I decided to get creative....what resulted was a sort of Pesto Pasta Carbonara. It was great!

Here's what I used (made about 3 large servings):

Remains of a jar of store-bought pesto, 1/4 c. to 1/3 c.
Remains of a tub of mascarpone cheese, about 1/2 c.
Remains of a jug of milk, about 1 cup
1/2 lb (250 g) Messicani pasta spirals from M&S (any small curly or shell shaped pasta will do)
1/2 pot of Sunblush sundried tomatoes in oil, about 1/2 c. (120g), drained and chopped up
Remains of a bag of frozen peas, about 1 cup
1/2 pot of Sainsbury's cubed pancetta, or 50 grams (sliced, chopped pancetta would also work)
Fresh grated parmesan cheese, about 1/4 c., or to taste

First, cook the pasta until al dente in a pot of salted, boiling water according to package instructions. Drain and set aside. In a small frying pan, heat a spoonful of oil over medium high heat and cook the pancetta cubes until crispy. Drain oil from pan and set pancetta aside on a paper towel to drain.

In a large saucepan, combine the milk, pesto sauce and mascarpone cheese over medium-low heat (taking care that the milk doesn't get too hot and boil or burn), until the mascarpone is mostly melted and combined with the milk. The sauce should be creamy. Add the frozen peas and sundried tomatoes and cook over medium heat, stirring, until peas are cooked through, about 4 minutes. Add cooked pancetta and Parmesan cheese to sauce and stir to combine. Add drained pasta to sauce mix and stir to coat. Serve hot with extra Parmesan cheese topping, if desired, and a green salad.

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