Spring Pasta with Brie, Ham, and Peas

Who doesn’t love spring? Flowers blooming, weather warming up, and March Madness! Ally loves March Madness every year, but this year was extra special. She, along with all the rest of the Cavalier faithful, had incredibly high hopes for redemption for this year’s team. And they DID IT! Monday night, way past our bedtime, the Virginia Cavaliers won the NCAA men’s basketball title game!

Since Ally made/ate this pasta on game night, we definitely have to document it, so she can superstitiously eat it for years to come. I’ve had the idea of making a light sauce with melted Brie floating around in my head for awhile now and am pleased how this turned out. It’s simple enough for a weeknight (or while nervously pacing, waiting for a championship game to start…) and light enough to welcome spring, despite what you might assume from the ingredients. It’s also a great use for leftover ham! By thinning out the Brie, you end up just lightly coating the pasta, so it doesn’t eat like a heavy Mac n cheese or something similar.

Spring Pasta with Brie, Ham, & Peas

Ingredients: 

• 1 tsp neutral oil
• 8oz ham, chopped (leftover or otherwise already cooked)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cups (dry) bowtie pasta
• 1/2 cup chicken stock
• 4oz Brie cheese, rind removed
• 1/2 cup green peas
• 2 large basil leaves, chopped
• Salt & pepper

Instructions: 

1. Heat oil in a large pan over low-medium heat. (If you have some fatty pieces of ham, you may be able to skip this step.) Toss the ham and minced garlic into the pan and cook until ham is warmed and garlic is fragrant.
2. Meanwhile, bring a large stockpot of water to a boil and cook pasta per instructions. Drain and set aside.
3. Remove ham to the side for the moment. Whisk the Brie and chicken stock together; lower heat if needed. Allow these two ingredients to come together over the low heat for the next approximately 5 minutes. Stir in the peas at this time as well.
4. Return the ham to the pan, along with the pasta. Toss together to coat the pasta with the Brie sauce. Top with pepper and salt as needed.
5. Serve, topped with fresh chopped basil.

Dinner for two!