Leek & Prosiutto Egg Pasta

Two things happened recently:

– I have a yet-to-be diagnosed problem of not being able to indulge in certain foods I love (goodbye, truffles, cheese, red meat, buttery goodness, etc.)
– The last few visits to St. Lawrence Market have been very inspiring that we’ve started doing it as a Saturday AM ritual

Other than crying over the fact that I can’t eat most foods I crave (Spends2Much had to witness my suspected gall-bladder attack on the 6 train going back to the hotel in NYC – not fun), I’m actually kind of glad that things have gone this way for me. I’ve been much more diligent about preparing myself fresh and simple meals that some good recipes have been concocted in my kitchen!

My favourite is definitely the Leek & Prosiutto Pasta with Peas

When I spotted fresh peas at St. Lawrence Market the other weekend, I got very excited. I had never thought of peas other than weird frozen things usually paired with TV dinners – until last year when my mom bought them at the farmer’s market in Surrey. Fresh peas are much more flavourful and tasty! Who knew! We picked up a package of prosiutto from Parma at the Italian deli as well – they were handing out samples, a great way to convince me to buy just about anything.

That night, in an attempt to throw together dinner quickly before heading out to climb, I looked in the fridge and threw the following ingredients in a pan –

2 small garlic cloves, minced
1 leek stalk, thoroughly washed and chopped up
1 pound of fresh peas, shelled
torn-up prosiutto (I used about 200g, but it’s really a personal preference)
egg pasta for 2, cooked and drained (I bought the DeCecco dried kind on sale at Whole Foods)
goat cheese chunks (optional)

1. In a pan over medium heat, warm up some olive oil with the minced garlic. Be careful not to burn the garlic.
2. Add the leeks and peas and cook until leeks start to soften, about 3-5 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste – and to encourage the leeks to release some liquids.
3. Add in torn up bits of prosiutto, and stirring frequently so that the pieces can get a bit dried out to add more flavour. Cook for about 5-8 minutes. If it’s too dry, add 1-2 tbsp chicken stock or dry white wine to scrape the pan, or just for fun.

The concoction that made my apartment smell amazing

4. Throw in pasta and toss together. Finish off with some chunks of goat’s cheese on top if you want. YUM!

Enjoy! If you have any suggestions on what else goes well with peas, let me know!