Madame Butterfly & Farfalle Pasta with Spring Peas

copyright 2011 art of living,PrimaMedia,Inc/Maria Liberati
February 17th and Spring is (almost) in the air (begins on March 20th at 7:21 PM), and thoughts of butterflies beckon. February 17th Madame Butterfly, the opera composed by Puccini made it’s debut  at  La Scala in Milan. And after a few revisions became, and still is  one of the most performed operas in North America
If you have begun seeing little hopeful glimpses of Spring in the air, it is not a mirage, with Spring only about a month away visions of butterflies, sun, fresh Spring veggies come to mind and a Spring time dish that includes farfalle (translation-butterfly) pasta and fresh peas for a true bite of Spring.
Farfalle pasta have strong similiarites to the character of  Puccini’s Madame Butterfly-they are delicate little creatures, and are usually served with delicate sauces. One would never think of weighing down farfalle with gobs of heavy sauce, they are just too delicate.
 

Farfalle with Spring Peas
*1 lb farfalle pasta
*1 cup baby peas (if not in season use frozen)
*1/2 cup cream
*2 tblsps Parmigiana Reggiano grated
*2 small scallions peeled and chopped
*1 cup vegetable broth
* 1 1/2 tblsps of extra virgin olive oil
*optional-2 ounces cooked prosiutto cut into cubes
Place oil in saute pan and heat, place in chopped scallions, saute for 1 minute. Add in peas and broth ,set aside 1 tblsp broth for later. When peas are tender but still firm, add in (optional prosciutto) and cream. Add in salt to taste. Let simmer over low heat, for 5 minutes.  Set aside.Boil pasta and cook till al dente, When finished add into cream sauce with 1 tblsp broth,   toss gently to coat with sauce. Complete dish with grated Parmigiana cheese and the dish is ready to be served.
 ***Congratulations to celebrity Chef Vincent Tropepe for being named as USACC Chef of the Year and on February 17th- I will be the host at the Awards dinner for him at Epoca Restaurant in NYC. Even Yogi Berra is a fan of his cookbook, he is also executive chef  at Epoca. F or more info on this go to www.epocanyc.com
For more great recipes get your copy ot the award winning book The Basic Art of Italian Cooking: Holidays & Special Occasions-2nd edition