Having a child drastically changed my cooking. Most drastically: the amount of items I make at home. Pre-child, I'd easily spend hours in the kitchen making homemade everything. I don't have that kind of time anymore and occasionally I miss. And so, I've been trying to add some of these items back in. One of my favorite items to hand make: pasta.
Pasta is a fairly basic homemade item but it's beyond worth it. The flavor and texture is unmatched by the dried pasta found in grocery stores. While I like to grind my own flour for the pasta, I wanted to share a recipe that didn't involve that (and was a bit more friendly to people who might not fully be on the 100% whole wheat flour train).
Vegetables: Swap the peas for whatever is in season. During the summer, roast zucchini squash or cherry tomatoes. During fall, try roasted sweet potatoes or butternut squash.
100% whole wheat: Drop the all-purpose and use all whole wheat flour. You could also add spelt or rye flour to the mix.
Vegan: I realize this recipe is about as far from a vegan meal as you could get BUT it's possible. I'd recommend make a water-based pasta (like this) and replace the sauce with this almond-based sauce.
This looks incredible! I'm allergic to dairy, though, so what could I use in place of the cream/ half and half? Would coconut cream work?
If you look through the variations, I give a suggestion for vegan (using almond milk!) You could also do a cashew cream!
Do you have a suggestion for how many oz. dry pasta this is? Making fresh pasta still scares me, but this looks delicious!
I'd say 8 to 10 ounces (I usually go 2oz of dried pasta per person!)
I made this tonight with a couple splashes more milk (no cream on hand), garlic scapes instead of cloves, and as a sometimes meat eater, tossed in some leftover grilled chicken while the sauce was simmering. It was a great meal!