Pasta with Peas and Pancetta

This pasta with peas and pancetta is perfect for springtime!  It has tons of flavor, yet it is simple and doesn’t require a lot of prep time.  

If you are looking for a simple and light pasta dish, it doesn’t get much better than this.  You basically make a sauce out of pasta water and cheese.  Using Romano cheese, which is a little bit sharper than some, and pancetta, gives this dish a ton of flavor. 

You’ll need:  Olive oil, diced pancetta, frozen green peas, pasta (I used butterfly) and Romano cheese.

First,  heat a tablespoon of olive oil into a large skillet.  Cook about 3 oz of chopped pancetta in the olive oil.  You can usually  find pancetta already diced and in a 3 or 4 oz package near the deli section of the grocery store.  Once it starts to brown a little, add a bag of frozen green peas and just saute for a few minutes.

Next, cook whatever kind of pasta you want to use (I used butterfly), drain and set aside.  Reserve about a cup of the pasta water.

Add the pasta to the skillet with the reserved pasta water and a lot of cheese – I used Romano.  You could also use parmesan, but Romano seems to give this dish a bit more flavor.  I used about a cup of cheese.  Mix it all together, thoroughly coating the pasta until you have a creamy cheesy coating on all the pasta.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Another way that you could prepare this pasta is by adding a cream sauce instead of the water and cheese.  This would be a great dish for Easter!  You could totally substitute asparagus for peas if you like that better.  Or maybe do both!  Just add a nice salad and you have a wonderful meal.  Happy Spring!

Print Recipe

Pasta with Peas and Pancetta

(2 votes, average: 4.00 out of 5)

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pasta – Italian

By Denise Palma – Serves: 4-6

Prep Time: 15 mins – Cooking Time: 15 mins – Total Time: 30 mins

This pasta with peas and pancetta is perfect for springtime! It has tons of flavor, yet it is simple and doesn't require a lot of prep time.

Ingredients

• 1 T olive oil
• 3-4 oz diced pancetta
• 12 oz bag frozen peas
• 1 lb butterfly pasta (may use other kinds of pasta if desired)
• 1 cup grated Romano
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1

Heat olive oil in skillet and add pancetta. Cook until starting to brown (3-4 minutes)

2

Add the peas and saute for another 3-4 minutes.

3

Cook pasta according to directions on the box. Drain, but reserve about a cup of pasta water.

4

Add the pasta, pasta water and cheese to the skillet, stirring to thoroughly coat and until a kind of sauce is formed.

5

Add salt and pepper to taste.

6

Top with a little more cheese and some red pepper flakes.