Monday, April 6, 2009

Ham, Cheese, Pasta Skillet

I grabbed some old Spring issues of Kraft Food and Family to look for inspiration for tonight's dinner. The cover of the 2005 issue features a photo of a dish that looked tasty and spring-y, not to mention I had all the ingredients on hand. Kraft suggested a basic recipe and you could choose a meat (chicken, bacon, beef or ham) and the veggies. Unfortunately, after reading the recipe I realized all I actually had were the ham and peas, but I had close substitutes for the rest, so here is my version of One-Pan Spring Pasta
*1/2 lb. farfalle pasta
*1 tsp. canola oil
*1/2 lb. cubed ham
*1/4 c. Kraft Caesar vinaigrette with Parmesan salad dressing
*1 1/2 c. frozen peas, thawed
*1 c. shredded Parmesan cheese, divided

Cook pasta as directed. Reserve 1/2 c. cooking water before draining. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add ham and cook until starting to brown. Reduce heat, add peas and cook for 1 minute over medium heat. Stir in salad dressing and stir to coat. Toss in cooked pasta, 3/4 c. Parmesan cheese and about 1/4 c. cooking water. Stir until incorporated. Add more water and cheese if desired. Serve with more Parmesan as garnish.
Admittedly, when I started putting this together I was thinking we'd likely be making PB&Js when this was not edible. I was wrong and we all really enjoyed it. I was thinking some roasted red peppers and bacon or chicken would be delicious as well.

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