Pasta con Piselli e Prosciutto



~ Chiesa in Castellina ~

Castellina in Chianti is a beautiful hill town perfectly situated in the heart of Chianti Classico.  As I wrote earlier, we fell in love with this place and visited it often during our stay in Tuscany.  We had several excellent meals there and one of them involved an ethereal pasta that I was determined to replicate once we returned home. 

 

See, my wife® loves peas.  In almost any form.  So it wasn't surprising when she gravitated toward this primi on Trattoria La Torre's menu.  But pasta, like many other things,  is different in Italy.  I've made pasta with peas and prosciutto before,  but never had I seen it presented like this.  This was different and is now the new standard.  So what's the key?  Read on.....

 

 

 

Pasta con Piselli e Prosciutto 

 

There are two keys to this recipe that set it apart.  First, the prosciutto used in Castellina was well rendered and almost caramelized to the point where it had a crunchy exterior and a soft, tender, melty interior.  Second, the peas.

 

In addition to being tossed into the final dish,  the sauce for the pasta clearly contained pureed peas.  This was an idea I simply had never thought of.  It increased the pea flavor of the dish exponentially.  Plus, and this cannot be overstated, it contributed to the balance of the dish.  Here you get the sweetness of the peas, the saltiness of the prosciutto and the savory component from grated cheese - you have a masterpiece! 

 

1/2 cup frozen peas, plus more for plating

1 pint light cream

Extra virgin olive oil

4 oz. prosciutto, diced

1 pound (500g) Fettucine or Tagliatelle

Salt, Pepper, Grated Reggiano

 

Start by rendering the prosciutto.  I was determined to do this slowly in order to develop that level of crunch to the exterior but frankly,  I failed.  I think the result will be better achieved if the pieces are cut larger,  almost like strips so that there is more surface area touching the pan.  I used pre-packaged diced prosciutto and the result was ok,  but not ideal.



~ Diced Prosciutto.  Take your time rendering it ~

Next combine the peas in a food processor or blender.  Season with salt and pepper and add just a touch of cream and oil.  Pulse slightly to break up the peas.  As they start to come together, begin drizzling the cream until the peas take on the consistency of melted ice cream.  I used about 1/2 the cream.   Taste for seasoning and adjust.  Set aside.  You will thin the pea sauce with some of the pasta water before serving. 




~  This is the pureed frozen peas combined with salt, pepper, cream & a drizzle of olive oil.  Note the consistency ~

Cook the pasta until just short of al dente and drain to the pan where you've been rendering the prosciutto.  Reserve 1 cup of the pasta cooking liquid to thin the pea puree.  Combine the pasta, the pea puree and a handful or two of whole peas to the pot and stir to coat.  Drizzle the pasta cooking water a little at a time so that the dish doesn't become watery.  Toss the pasta thoroughly and allow to finish cooking a minute or two to absorb the flavor of the sauce. 



~ This is the pasta in a serving platter.  The sauce clinged to the noodles very well and was a lot greener than this picture shows.  ~

This is very easy to make and essentially is a four ingredient dish if you count the cream.  The key is to drizzle the liquid into the pea puree slowly.  It was the first time I replicated this and it was trial and error but it came out very well.   The chef's plate....



~ In this close up, you can see the color of the sauce a bit more clearly ~

This dish was a hit - even among the kids who don't count peas among their favorite vegetables.  The prosciutto, and I suspect in Castellina they really used Guanciale which probably contributes to the difference,  needs some improvement but my wife gave this a hearty thumbs up, albeit with the caveat that it wasn't quite as good as in Italy.  

 

Well, duh.