Easy Peas-y Tortellini (Berkshire Eagle Column)

Since school vacation began Friday at 11:15 a.m. (not like I was counting the minutes or anything!), I have been cooking a lot, especially things I don’t usually have the time or the energy to cook. Truth be told, I sometimes do make something a bit more involved or interesting, even, occasionally, on a school night. And then there are the days when I’m trying to fit dinner in between a faculty meeting and an evening Zoom meeting.

On days such as that, an easy go-to is what I wrote about for last week’s Berkshire Eagle column. You can even have all the ingredients as staples. As mentioned below, you can freeze heavy cream, and that would allow you to have this as a last-minute supper on a busy evening.

TORTELLINI ALLA NONNA

by Elizabeth Baer

The image of the Italian grandmother looms large in the culinary landscape. Among my cookbook collection, at least five mention nonna or some translation thereof in the title, and many more wax poetic about grandma’s cooking. There are the “Pasta Grannies” videos and companion cookbooks; and there was once a TV show called “My Grandmother’s Ravioli” (though it visited with grandmothers from many culinary traditions). Not surprisingly, then, there is a pasta dish known as tortellini alla nonna.

If I were an actual Italian grandmother, or had an Italian grandmother (I wish!), I might be making this with homemade tortellini. And if you are looking for a project, making your own tortellini would certainly be amazing. But tortellini, in my view, are not so easy. One year we visited Bologna, the legendary home of tortellini, and Hank signed us up for a class. We had a wonderful day at the markets and then at the home of our instructors, with just one other couple, making tortellini and other dishes. Rolling the pasta dough, adding the filling, and sealing the pouch were all easy enough. But when it came time to fold it into the shape that is said to resemble Venus’ navel, it was hard to get it quite right! So on my own, if I’m making filled pasta from scratch, I’ll stick to the simpler shape of ravioli.

Fortunately, there are many wonderful tortellini options, some refrigerated, and some of which you can keep on hand (frozen or shelf-stable) for a quick and easy dinner. While the heavy cream is a perishable item, I often find myself not finishing a container of cream and I freeze it in half-cup containers. While I wouldn’t use defrosted cream for something like whipped cream, it’s fine in something like this.

For a vegetarian option, omit the prosciutto and add some chopped mushrooms.

TORTELLINI WITH PROSCIUTTO AND PEAS

Serves 2, can be doubled

INGREDIENTS:

• 9 ounces cheese-filled tortellini, refrigerated, frozen, or shelf-stable

• Salt for the pasta water

• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

• 1 ounce prosciutto, preferably imported, sliced thin, cut into thin ribbons; or for vegetarian, ¼ cup finely chopped mushrooms

• ⅓ cup frozen peas

• ½ cup heavy cream, divided

• Pinch ground nutmeg

• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan, plus more for serving

DIRECTIONS:

Put a pot of water on to boil for the tortellini. The exact timing of the tortellini relative to making the sauce will vary depending on the cooking instructions of the tortellini, whether you are using refrigerated, frozen, or shelf-stable. Taking that into consideration, once you have determined when to start the tortellini, add a generous pinch of salt to the water and add the tortellini. Stir once or twice to make sure they don’t stick.

Meanwhile, or before starting the pasta, melt the butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the prosciutto and sauté for about 3 minutes. Add the peas and cook for 3 minutes more. Add about half the cream and the nutmeg, and stir to combine. If tortellini are not quite done, reduce heat to low.

Once the tortellini are done, remove from the water using a spider or a strainer and add directly to the pan with the sauce. If you have reduced the heat to low, return to medium. (If you don’t have a spider or strainer, reserve some pasta water in case you need it, drain the tortellini in a colander, and add to the sauce.)

Add the remaining cream and the grated Parmesan and stir gently to combine, allowing the sauce to reduce slightly and coat the tortellini. Serve immediately with more Parmesan passed at the table.