Herby pasta with pea & basil sauce
We're back with a delicious fresh pasta dish that is so simple you'll wonder why you've never tried it before! Fresh pasta is just the best and you can free batches of the dough for use later. It should always either be frozen or eaten on the day you make it - it should never see the inside of a fridge!
Ingredients (serves 4)
300g plain 00 flour
3 eggs
Fresh chives, parsley and marjoram
For the sauce
300g peas
1 clove garlic
40g parmesan, grated
150g ricotta
Small bunch basil
Grated zest and juice of ½ lemon
Black pepper
Method
Put the flour in a bowl and add the eggs then gradually work the flour in until the mixture comes together. If it’s dry add a little water. Turn out onto the work surface and knead for 10 minutes or until smooth and elastic. Tear, snip or chop the herbs and work them into the dough until evenly distributed.
Tear off little balls of the dough and roll them between your hands or on the work surface to form the worm-like pici. Of course, you can make any pasta shapes you like and use a pasta machine to help if you have one.
To make the sauce, boil the peas for 2 minutes, then drain. Add garlic, herbs, lemon zest and juice, then blitz in a food processor. Stir in the ricotta and parmesan and a little black pepper.
Cook the pasta for 5 minutes in boiling water then drain, retaining a little of the cooking water which you can add to the sauce if it seems too dry. Mix the sauce and pasta then serve with an extra grating of parmesan.
