Fettucini With Prosciutto, Peas, Mint & Lemon Basil

This is one of my quick, easy to make meals for a weekday night. Granted, it is not what you would eat if you are on a diet, but once in a while it's okay. Just watch your portions and add a green salad. Most of the ingredients are staples in my pantry, refrigerator and freezer. If you missed my earlier post on the well stocked pantry, click here. If you don't have prosciutto, add more bacon. You can always substitute pancetta for both the bacon and the prosciutto. Play with it! Lemon basil is something I discovered last year and I always have it in the garden. I just got some last week in the Garden Section of Home Depot but I'm sure you can get it at most nurseries. It is wonderful with pastas. If you can't find it, either add more mint or use regular fresh basil. Don't use the dry stuff, it is too strong for a delicate dish such as this.

Ingredients

1 lb. Fettuccine Barilla

2 bunches of scallions, chopped

2TB butter

4 strips bacon

2 garlic cloves, mashed

1 small carton heavy cream

4 oz. dry white wine

6 oz Prosciutto di Parma

6 pkg. frozen baby peas

1 TB chopped lemon basil leaves

2 TB chopped mint leaves

3 TB Parmesan cheese

Red Pepper Flakes

Directions

Boil the fettuccine in plenty of salted water according to package direction. In another small pot, melt the butter add the garlic, scallions and bacon. Cook until bacon is slightly done and the scallions are translucent. Add the cream and the wine and boil down until reduced by half. Keep in low simmer until fettuccine finishes cooking. 3 minutes before pasta is done, add the peas to the water (that way you don't have to dirty another pot!). Drain pasta, reserving about 1 cup of the water in case you need it to thin the pasta at the end. Mix the pasta with the sauce, add the chopped lemon basil and mint, the Parmesan cheese and a couple of shakes of the red pepper flakes.