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I owe a lot of my cooking tricks to my friend Amy. She's the one who first taught me to dump a strainer-ful of cooked pasta over a salad, basically, and feel like I could eat just a bowl of pasta for dinner. No salad or other healthy green side necessary. I first mentioned this Strozzapretti with Pecorino, Prosciutto and Something Green last January, but took a rather unappetizing photo, and neglected to show the green of "something green." I've felt bad about it ever since.
So last night, the friend with whom I'd originally shared this meal came over for dinner. What to cook on a Wednesday night when one cook is a tired working mother and the other is seven months pregnant?
"Let's strangle the priest," I said to my expecting friend, referring to strozzapretti, the pasta shape we'd used originally and have each time since for its talent at holding the eggy sauce in its loins, and just because "priest strangler" is an irresistible name for a pasta shape. "Let's."
Two things to know. First, you can use any shape of pasta, of course (other nice, easy to find shapes are penne and farfalle.)
Second, select small tender greens like baby (or chopped) spinach, frisée;, baby arugula, or even a handful of young herbs. What you see here is spinach. I used endive in the original recipe, but with all the beautiful spinach coming into markets, with its tempting levels of vitamins, it was an easy choice. Use what's in season.
The whole trick with this kind of one-bowl meal is to incorporate your nutritious greens without having to cook them separately from the pasta. In this case, the sauce is prepared by whisking the eggs, cheese, salt and pepper into a big bowl that awaits the hot pasta, and perhaps some simmering broth.
Here is the original recipe. You can make it in about 10 minutes, or as long as it takes to boil the pasta. It's perfect for midweek home cooking (how about tonight?), or entertaining any day of the week when you want to cook something fresh, delicious, and healthy, and want it to appear effortless.
• Recipe: Strozzapretti with Pecorino, Prosciutto and Something Green
Oh, thank you! I've been trying to figure out what I'm going to eat tonight and this'll work perfectly. And then I can loaf on the couch with the cats and not feel guilty for having eaten take-out AGAIN this week.
view Tiamat_the_Red's profile
My favorite lazy summer dinner or lunch is to chop some fresh veggies (usually tomatoes and peppers) and put them in a bowl topped with pasta. I use bottled Italian salad dressing and parmesan/romano cheese and that is it. Fast, cheap, and tasty.
I'm definitely going to try the green salad w/pasta idea very soon.
view Sydney's profile
This is a great, easy type of recipe. We do something similiar but add even more greens and reduce the pasta by 2/3s.
view JudiAU's profile
Whoops. Meant to say that we reduce the pasta by 1/3.
view JudiAU's profile
I do a similar preparation quite often. If I have any other veggies to throw in that might need a bit of cooking rather than just wilting under the hot pasta, I just throw them in the hot water with the pasta and cook them together. Easy!
view Aimi's profile
I love one pot pasta veggie meals -- they are my favorite single girl food.
So simple in preparation, yet can end up to be a fairly elegant meal with the right ingredients added in.
view MarmaladeInk's profile
Our favorite one dish pasta is open to endless variation as well. Paul Newman's balsamic vinegarette with grated pocorino or Romano and any fresh vegie you have on hand. Yum... it makes my taste buds sing. :)
view Alice's profile