Creamy Pea Pasta

It may sound stupid, but it is so good. Giada gave it some other name, but let's face it: mine is better.

Italian Sausage, sweet peas, and mascarpone pasta. Boom goes the dynamite.

Normally, I give Giada a wide berth because, to be honest, she's kind of special (as in special needs). And I don't mean that she's stupid, she just sounds really, really dumb walking around in her American clothing spouting off about Italian food. Perhaps I subconsciously dislike her because of her giant head, which sits atop a dainty little figure like some sort of unrealistic Barbie doll (the guidette version).

But really I think it's because of the way she pronounces every. single. syllable. in any Italian word that comes up during her shows. I'm sorry, but I can't take you seriously when you're describing the fantastic way that paaaaRRRRmmehhGIannno crumbles and are yelling it condescendingly in my direction.

Not to continue on too much in this negative direction, but it also gets my goat that her cake recipes often go like this:
1 stick butter
1 cup sugar
1 box cake mix....

...what? You're an acclaimed chef and you're telling me to make a cake from a box? Shut the front door.

Enough of that bad-mouthing; she does have some great recipes, the following included. Hers comes with ricotta instead of mascarpone and calls for spicy sausage, but I just wanted to be different and went with the following:

You will need:
1 bunch basil
1 pound pasta
8 oz mascarpone cheese (sub ricotta or cream cheese)
1 lb sweet or mild italian sausage
1 lb frozen peas, rinsed and mostly thawed
3-4 cloves garlic
1 t olive oil
1/4 c half-n-half
1/2 c parmigiano cheese (pronounce however you gosh darn please)
1 bunch asparagus, rinsed and woody part trimmed off
S+P

Put a pot of water on to boil, heavily salted.
Chop up your garlic

And get it going in a pan over medium heat with the oil. Once fragrant, add the sausage and brown,

breaking it up into small pieces with a wooden spoon. While that browns, shred your cheese

and finely chop the basil into shreds:

Basil is a very sensitive herb and can bruise very easily, so don't abuse it too much or else everyone at the table will know what you've done. Once the water boils, toss the asparagus in for about 4-5 minutes, or until desired doneness. Remove it with tongs, then add the pasta with some more salt.

Your sausage should be almost done at this point, so you're ready to add the peas. Scoot the sausage over in the pan and throw in the green pods. Now mash them all up with the back of the spoon or a potato masher.

Turn the heat off and add the mascarpone and half-n-half.

Stir it all together until the cheese has melted into a saucy deliciousness. Drain the pasta (if done, silly!) and place back in the pot. Add your sauce, shredded cheese, basil, and S+P to the pot and stir gently.

Daintily prepare your serving bowl with a heaping portion of yum and a side of asparagus.

And you've got yourself a tasty meal! I finished this off with some Lemon Lavender bars with Macadamia nut crust, which are my Lemon Bars with the addition of 1 T Lavender in the crust and a handful of pureed nuts. Very tasty, if I do say so myself!

The dish was very creamy and delightful. Feel free to reserve some of the pasta water to add to the sauce, or just throw in some extra 1/2 and 1/2. If you want extra smooth, puree the peas with the half n half before adding it to the pot!

nommynomnoms