A Gentleman's Pasta

The Sicilian Gentleman's Cookbook has been on our shelf for years. I'm not entirely sure where it came from, but I believe Joe's grandmother Lucy found it in her kitchen at some point and gave it to him. As I said, we've had it for years, but we've only ever made one recipe from it - Pasta with Peas. This meal is one of Joe's specialities, meaning that he's the one who always prepares it. It's quick and easy and very tasty. Of course, I love peas so that might have something to do with my enjoyment, but Joe is not a huge pea fan and he still loves this pasta. When Joe made this on Tuesday night I asked him to add in some turkey sausage for a little extra protein and it was great. As Joe stated, you really must use shell pasta for this as it "gives the peas somewhere to hide." Joe also substitutes the Romano cheese with whatever we have on hand and stirs in right into the finished pasta. And the cookbook was obviously written by a hearty Italian man, since the serving size for this recipe claims to be 3-4. For 1 lb of pasta! We got 5-6 servings easily - plenty of leftovers!

Pasta with Peas

1 lb shell pasta

4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 package (10 oz) frozen peas

2 tbsp oregano

2 cups chicken broth

salt and pepper to taste

handful of chopped parsley

grated Romano cheese

Heat the olive oil in a large pan and saute the garlic and onion until onion is translucent. Add the frozen peas and stir until thawed and separated. Add the oregano, chicken broth and salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then simmer 15 minutes. Cook pasta to al dente. Mix cooked and drained pasta into the sauce and heat for 3-4 minutes. Transfer to serving bowl and sprinkle with parsley and grated cheese.