My boyfriend was ill, napping in my bed. I was enjoying the fact that ESPN was airing a college softball game, and even more so that the said college softball game was tied in the bottom of the 7th with 2 outs. It was late in the afternoon, and as you know, my Sunday was not quite as exciting as one hopes for.  I sat under the covers, laptop in lap, magazine in hand.  Mmmmm Cooking Light is sure to wake my taste buds.

So what do I do?  Get off my butt, drive to the store, and make a delicious looking meal, straight from the pages of Cooking Light.  I get ingredients for a simple salad, and even some corn on the cob for the side.

I return home.  Boil, drain, cut, rinse, pour, stir, mix.  A short 30 minutes later and well there you have it.  A pretty good looking meal if I must say so myself.

Boyfriend is still ill.  Isn’t up for food.  So I put one place setting away, put one of the two bowls back in the cabinet.  Bummer.  My idea of surprising the boyf with a nice home cooked meal failed, but it’s the thought that counts right?  Please say yes.

Oh well, life goes on.  I enjoyed my dinner.  A lot in fact.  So much that I should share this simple recipe with you.   The section of this month’s mag that I pulled this from was one like “Quick and easy” or “The less ingredients the better.”  They sure know how to catch my attention!  Simple is good.

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Pasta should be easy and delicious, like this entrée. Prep the peas, cheese, and basil while the pasta water heats. Serve with a green salad.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: about 1 cup)

Ingredients

• 9  ounces  uncooked fresh linguine
• 1  cup  shelled fresh green peas
• 4  teaspoons  extra-virgin olive oil
• 1  tablespoon  unsalted butter
• 2  tablespoons  fresh lemon juice
• 1/2  teaspoon  salt
• 1/4  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4  cup  thinly sliced fresh basil
• 2  ounces  shaved fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Preparation

1. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Add peas to pasta during the last 2 minutes of cooking time. Drain pasta mixture in a colander over a bowl, reserving 1/4 cup pasta liquid.

2. Heat oil and butter in pan over medium heat 1 minute or until butter melts. Remove from heat; stir in pasta mixture, reserved pasta water, juice, salt, and pepper; toss well.

3. Divide pasta mixture evenly among 4 bowls; top each serving with 1 tablespoon basil and about 2 tablespoons cheese. Serve immediately.

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The end. You’re welcome. Just make sure you use linguine instead of fettucine like I did. I know, I know they are similar – hardly different right? Wrong. It was delicious (I swear) but I think the fettucine made it a just a bit too pasta-y.