Pasta with Ham and Leeks

My mom, who as you know by now, is also a great cook. We love to share ideas and recipes with each other and will go as far as to call each other JUST to talk about some amazing thing we made for dinner last night.

But there is a big difference between my mom and I.  While it's very rare for me to make the same thing twice, even if I love it, my mom will repeat recipes over and over.  I love to tease her about it, but the advantage to repeating recipes several times is that you have those particular dishes down to a delicious art.  It's like going to a restaurant with a really small menu, you know that whatever they do serve is going to be phenomenal.

My mom made this pasta for us the last time we were home and I scarfed it down as if I hadn't eaten in days.  The flavors, the richness, I mean, THIS is a bowl of pasta.  Knowing how much my husband would love it, I made it for him shortly after going home.  Guess what, it wasn't as good.  I hadn't fine tuned it like my mom had.  It's inspired me to work on recipes a bit more when they don't work out as well as I'd like the first time.  Touche mom!

Pasta with Ham and Leeks 
Women's Day Magazine April 2012 

Cream Sauce
Ingredients


1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
kosher salt and pepper
3/4 cup whole milk
4 oz cream cheese, cubed
1/4 cup grated cheese
pinch of nutmeg

Directions

1.  Heat oil in a large skillet over medium low heat in a large skillet.  Add onion and 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and pepper.  Cook, covered, stirring occasionally until tender, about 6-8 minutes.  Stir in the garlic and cook 1 minute.

2.  Whisk in the milk and bring to a simmer.  Whisk in the cream cheese, Parmesan and nutmeg and simmer, stirring occasionally until thickened, 2-3 minutes.  When adding cream sauce to pasta, add reserved pasta water if sauce is too dry.

Pasta
Ingredients

1 lb Fettuccine, cooked according to directions, saving 1 cup pasta water
1 Tablespoon olive oil
2 leeks, cleaned and chopped into half moons
1 cup frozen peas, thawed
6 oz ham, chopped (I just used deli meat)

Directions

Heat oil in large skillet until hot.  Add leeks and saute until tender, about five minutes.  Add peas and ham and toss to combine.  Add pasta and cream sauce.  Add pasta water if sauce is too dry.  Serve immediately.

What recipe have you mastered?