Prep time: 5 mins                        Cooking Time: approx. 10mins                          Serves: 4

Carleschi's worst kept secret is that we really cannot resist smooth and creamy sauces! Double that when it comes to making the irresistible pecorino and peas sauce. The beauty of this recipe is its flexibility with ingredients, you could replace peas with broad beans or zucchini(Courgettes) for example, any goes as long as the main star of the show is here; the Pecorino.

The Pecorino is key for this recipe because of the delectable cheesy sauce it will create, making every bite of pasta a rich, indulgent experience. We like to also add a bit of lemon zest to the dish, however it isn't essential and you can even replace this with some finely chopped parsley or even fresh mint. If you want to go the extra mile, another great way to enrich the sauce is by adding 70g of Sun-dried tomatoes before mixing the pasta with the sauce.

And for the meat lovers reading this, adding either guanciale, speck or prosciutto crudo to this recipe will take this recipe to the next level. For today, we will be focusing only on the base recipe. 

Ingredients

• 400g Pastificio Carleschi Einkorn Ditaloni Lisci (Or any other pasta of choice)
• 30g  Pecorino Romano cheese (plus extra if you like to sprinkle some on your plate)
• Zest of one Lemon
• 100g Shallot (finely chopped)
• 350g Frozen Peas
• 3 tbs Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Salt (To taste)
• Crushed Peppercorns (To taste)

Instructions

• Start by finely slicing the shallot and putting just over 4l of water to a pot to boil.
• Take a non-stick sauce pan large enough to contain all the pasta, and add Olive Oil and shallots, gently fry until golden, then add the frozen peas.
• Add 2-3 pinches of salt and then pasta to the boiling water. Follow Pasta cooking instructions
• Add 1-2 pinches of salt, crushed peppercorns and a ladle(5 tbs) of pasta cooking water to the pan. Cook for 10 minutes.
• While pasta is cooking, put half the peas sauce, a ladle of pasta cooking water and the grated pecorino cheese in a food blender (keep some of the pasta cooking water just before you drain the pasta and keep it aside, in case you need it).
• Blend until you have achieved a smooth consistency.
• Stir in the pan gently and grate the zest of a lemon on top. 
  
• Lower the heat to the minimum and add the pasta, toss vigorously, you want to make a ‘creamy sauce’, keep tossing over the same low heat. If you like your pasta creamy then stop, if you like it a bit less creamy then keep going.

Buon Appetito!