Trumpet Herb Pasta with Peas

 

I got this pasta from Pappardelle's stand at the holiday farmer's market in Rehoboth, DE and had to share how excellent their pasta is. The wide selection at the market included everything from spinach lemon herb fettucine and garlic chive pappardelle to spicy Thai linguine and dark chocolate pasta! (Dessert pasta - crazy awesome.) They also have gluten-free pasta options such as porcini mushroom large trumpet and basil garlic penne, which is great considering the relatively limited variety in most gluten free pasta available. They retail online www.pappardellesonline.com and sell at farmers markets and festivals all over the country and British Columbia, apparently.

 

 

I chose the trumpet herb blend with a mix of carrot tarragon, chive, and dill & parsley peppercorn pasta, and I recommend this pasta blend if you're looking for a shorter-cut pasta with lots of flavor. Pappardelle's provides sample recipes to go along with their pastas to give you ideas (I took photos of the recipes on display at the market like a nutcase but they're on the website) and they recommended trumpet herb blend for pasta salad with tuna and cauliflower, which sounds great for a summer picnic. For a late autumn dinner, this is how I prepared the pasta:

 

1) Bring pot of water to a boil and salt; add pasta.

2) A few minutes before the pasta's done (8-10 minutes to cook al dente, but I use my "Italian timer" ;) to determine when pasta's ready) add about 1/2 cup frozen peas to the water to warm through.

3) Drain the pasta and peas, reserving some of the starchy cooking water for the sauce.

4) Pour the pasta and peas in a bowl and add 2 tbsp. low fat cream cheese, freshly ground black pepper, a pinch of oregano and red pepper flakes to taste. *I chose a simple cream sauce for this so that the pasta's intense herb flavor is the star of the dish.

5) Add a spoonful of the starchy cooking liquid to create a sauce and stir so the cheese melts over the pasta; add more water as necessary to thin out the sauce consistency.

6) Finish with a drizzle of good olive oil and serve warm. Enjoy!