It’s official. I’m on a mission to make each and every one of Molly Baz’s pasta recipes. So far, I’ve tackled her roasted cauliflower carbonara, mushroom carbonara and, most recently, pasta with buttermilk, mint and peas. All three dishes were unexpectedly delicious.
Molly’s creations generally call for basic ingredients (many of which you likely have on hand) and come together quickly and easily. For example, I only had to procure leeks and snap peas in order to assemble this primo piatto and whipped it up in under 30 minutes.
Pasta with buttermilk, mint and peas is creamy yet light, thanks to the addition of fresh veggies and herbs. And a splash of lemon juice lends just the right amount of tang. Needless to say, I devoured it in a few days – and I’m now itching to take Molly’s jammy pepper pasta salad recipe for a spin in the kitchen.
Recipe adapted from Bon Appétit.
- ¼ cup blanched hazelnuts
- 5 teaspoons olive oil, divided
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 small leeks (white and light green parts only), halved lengthwise, thinly sliced and rinsed
- 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- ¼ teaspoon dried chili flakes
- 6 sprigs fresh mint, divided
- sea salt, to taste
- ½ cup buttermilk (see notes)
- 8 ounces conchiglie or other short pasta
- 1 cup snap peas, cut in half diagonally
- ½ cup frozen peas
- ⅓ cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, plus more for serving
- 4 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
- Place hazelnuts on a baking sheet. Drizzle with 1 teaspoon olive oil and toss to coat. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown, stirring halfway through. Remove from the oven, let cool and then roughly chop.
- In a large pot, heat remaining 4 teaspoons olive oil and butter over medium heat. Add leeks, garlic, chili flakes and 3 mint sprigs and cook, stirring occasionally, until leeks are tender, about 5 minutes. Season with salt. Add buttermilk and bring to a simmer. Remove from heat and discard mint.
- Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta 2 minutes less than al dente according to package directions. Add snap peas and frozen peas and cook for 2 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup cooking liquid.
- Add cooked pasta and peas to pot with leeks and stir to combine. Add Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese and stir vigorously until combined. If necessary, add some of the reserved cooking liquid to loosen the sauce.
- Add lemon juice and remaining mint, torn into small pieces, and stir to combine. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with toasted hazelnuts and additional Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese and serve immediately.
