We’re back with another savory recipe today! I post savory stuff very rarely, but I do find it fun to play around with something not so sweet.
But I have to confess, this isn’t technically baking. But who cares. It’s tasty and it’s springy, and it’s fun.
It’s hard to believe that we are already pretty deeply into spring. I feel like I just got back from winter break. But here we are, and life is pretty crazy right now. I’m just holding my breath and keeping my head up until summer break. Not because I enjoy the season, but because I am struggling to keep up with all my activities and I need a good long break from school.
And we’re gonna make it because there’s only like six ish weeks left. And the last one doesn’t even really count. We can do it people.
Anyway back to pasta. This is a really simple recipe, but of course I went ahead and made it complicated by making fresh pasta. HOWEVER. You don’t have to use fresh pasta. I think it’s a fun thing to make, and a good skill to practice but this recipe is a lot faster if you use store-bought pasta.
Describe This Pasta to Me:
Taste: This pasta has all the flavors of spring. You’ve got that classic basil pesto taste, plus a little sweetness from the peas and carrots. Then there’s the buttery creaminess of the ricotta, with a little tang from the lemon. I tried to keep the flavors pretty simple here to really let that fresh pasta shine.
Texture: The sauce is very creamy, thanks to the ricotta. But the best part is the fresh springy pasta. Fresh pasta is very soft which goes just perfectly with this sauce and it’s springy flavors.
Ease: Making this dish is pretty straightforward, but I will say that making fresh pasta can be time consuming. You have to make the dough, then roll it out super thin, then cut it. But I think it’s worth it for special occasions.
Fresh Pasta
Let’s talk about making fresh pasta. It comes together with just four ingredients, flour, salt, eggs, and olive oil. Once you have a shaggy dough, knead that for around 10 minutes. This will be a bit of an arm workout, but that’s ok! Once you’re done, let that rest for about 30 minutes. Then it’s time to roll it out with a pasta making attachment to your mixer. Roll the dough out into sheets in sections, then let those sit (floured and not touching so they don’t stick) while you make the rest of the dish. Fresh pasta only needs to cook in boiling water for about 2 minutes, so we won’t cut and cook it until the very end.
Homemade Pesto
Homemade pesto sounds like it should be super difficult to make, but it’s actually really simple. For this recipe, I grind up spinach (mostly for volume), basil, parmesan, olive oil, garlic, pine nuts, salt, and pepper. Just pulse that in a food processor until you have a nice homemade pesto. I like to make this before I start cooking and stick in the fridge so I have it at the ready.
Toppings and Mix Ins
Aside from the pesto, we’ve got a few other things going on here. Start off by cooking down some leeks and garlic. Then add in some thawed frozen peas and carrots, lemon zest, ricotta, and heavy cream. Season that with some salt and pepper. Throw in your pesto, then your cooked pasta. Now your pasta’s done! For a finishing touch, I crisp up some prosciutto in the oven, then crush that on top with a couple of sliced cherry tomatoes, and a sprinkle of flakey sea salt.
Fresh Spring Pasta
Ingredients
Method
- Add the flour to a wide shallow bowl, and create a crater in the middle. Add the eggs, olive oil, and salt to that crater. Using a fork, beat the eggs in the flour well, slowly incorporating the flour until you have a shaggy dough.
- Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface. Knead for 8-10 minutes or until a smooth ball of dough forms. It will be very sticky and messy at first, but it will come together! If not, add a little more flour. The dough should bounce back when poked, and should feel pretty stiff. Wrap the dough tightly with cling wrap and allow it to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes.
- Add all of the pesto ingredients to a large food processor and pulse until a sauce forms. Taste, then add more oil if too thick, or more cheese or nuts if too thick. Add more salt or pepper if needed. Set in the fridge until ready to use in the pasta.
- Grease two large baking sheets with olive oil. Set aside.
- Slice the rested dough into quarters. Press one quarter into a disk thin enough to fit through a pasta roller attachment. Run the disk through the pasta roller attachment 3 times on level 1. Fold both short ends of the oval to meet in the center, then fold the dough in half to form a rectangle.
- Run the dough through the pasta roller three times on level 2, three times on level 3, and then one time on levels 4, 5, and 6. Place the long rolled out dough on the greased baking sheet. If it doesn't fit, sprinkle half of the sheet with flour and then fold the second half on top. Make sure every side is floured because the dough gets very sticky.
- Repeat with the remaining three sections of dough. We won't cut the dough until we are ready to cook the noodles (to avoid sticking)
- Preheat the oven to 350℉. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and lay your prosciutto out in an even layer. Bake for 5-10 minutes or until crisp. Allow to sit at room temperature while we finish the pasta.
- In a large sauce pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the leeks and garlic. Stir and then season with salt and pepper .Cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently until leeks are softened and lightly browned.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil as the leeks cook.
- Add the thawed peas and carrots and cook for 3 minutes. Then add the ricotta, lemon zest, and cream. Stir in ½ of your homemade pesto (you will have extra, you can use more in the pasta if you'd like or save it for later) Season with salt and pepper, and turn the heat down to low to keep warm while we cook the pasta.
- Unfold any folded sheets of dough. Using a fettuccine pasta cutter attachment, cut each sheet into long noodles. You may want to use culinary scissors to cut the noodles in half because the will be very long. Immediately place in the boiling water and cook for 1-2 minutes.
- Drain the pasta and then put it back into the pot. Add the pesto sauce to the pasta and toss/stir to combine.
- Divide the pasta evenly among 4 bowls and top with crushed crispy prosciutto, sliced cherry tomatoes, green onions, and a sprinkle of flakey sea salt. Enjoy!