Is your family like mine? No-one seems to enjoy eating leftovers around here. I mean, what’s up with that? Being a food blogger means I end up with a lot of leftovers and it’s hard for my husband to keep up. I even send extras to work with him to share with the guys at the office, LOL. So I have to get creative to get leftovers eaten, because I hate wasting food!!!
I love a clever easy to make leftover-makeover meal that tastes just as good as, or even better than the original meal. I love transforming leftovers into something completely different. The nice thing about this recipe is that my family didn’t even realize they were eating leftovers with this delectable creamy pasta dish.
I had a lot of leftover ham from Christmas to use up and another grilled ham and cheese sandwich or ham and cheese omelette just wasn’t sounding good for dinner. So I decided to whip up this easy pasta dish instead. Adding leftover ham and peas to a simple easy to make creamy Alfredo sauce produced a truly delectable, quick and easy pasta meal.
The combination of the salty tender ham with the creamy Alfredo sauce is a delectable pairing of flavors. I added peas to round out the meal with a veggie but you could just as easily add asparagus or broccoli cut into bite sized pieces. This is a very versatile recipe, just use whatever veggie you have on hand that your family loves. Sliced mushrooms would be a fabulous addition as well!!!
Start by getting the pasta going. Cook pasta according to package directions. During the last 1 minute of cook time, add frozen peas to the pot. Drain and set aside.
While pasta/peas are cooking, melt butter over medium heat in a large skillet .
Sauté diced onion in butter until soft and translucent.
TIP: If adding sliced mushrooms to this recipe, cook them in the butter with the onions.
Add the ham and cook for a couple minutes to heat through.
Add heavy cream, salt and pepper and bring the sauce to a simmer.
Stir in Parmesan cheese and stir until cheese melts, and sauce is smooth, creamy, and starts to thicken, about 1-2 minutes.
Add cooked pasta and peas to the skillet and stir to combine.
Serve topped with additional shredded Parmesan cheese if desired.
Such an easy meal, and so delicious. A fabulous weeknight meal that you can get on the table in under 30 minutes.
Creamy Ham Pasta
Ingredients
- 8 oz shell pasta
- 8 oz peas
- ½ cup onion, diced
- ¼ cup butter, cubed
- ½ lb cooked ham, cubed
- ½ cup heavy whipping cream
- ½ tsp pepper
- 1 tsp salt
- ¼ cup Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to package directions.
- During the last 1 minute of cook time, add frozen peas to the pot. Drain and set aside.
- While pasta/peas are cooking, melt butter over medium heat in a large skillet .
- Sauté onion in butter until soft and translucent.
- Add the cream, diced ham, salt and pepper and bring the sauce to a simmer.
- Stir in Parmesan cheese and stir until cheese melts, and sauce is smooth and creamy, about 1-2 minutes.
- Add cooked pasta and peas to the skillet and stir to combine.
- Serve topped with additional shredded Parmesan cheese if desired.
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