Lemon Pasta with Ham

This is an incredibly easy recipe that has a nice, unique flavor. This recipe of mine emerged from a recipe I saw in Martha Stewart’s Everyday Food. Her recipe, Herbed Spaghetti with Pasta, caught my eye because it called for wheat pasta. I have some leftover wheat pasta from when I made my Pancetta and Sage with Linguini Pasta so I figured this would be a great way to use the rest of it.

Martha’s recipe utilizes butter, but in my attempt to be healthier (i.e., look good for the summer!) I substituted it for olive oil. I also really wanted to emphasis the fresh lemon flavor so I used a lot more lemon zest and juice than what her recipe calls for. Lastly, I included a little thinly sliced ham (apple smoked ham--yum!) to add a nice warm flavor to the dish and provide an extra dimension.

Here is the recipe I used (for four people). If you make this, don’t worry too much about measurements—just go with what tastes right for you:

• 4 Servings of wheat spaghetti or linguini (about 8 oz, or 4 cups cooked)
• 1-2 tbsp Olive oil
• 4 oz Ham, thinly sliced
• 2 Lemons, zested and juiced
• 1 ½ cups Parsley, chopped
• Salt & pepper

1. Over high heat, bring a large pot of water to boiling. Add a generous amount of salt to the water and add pasta. Cook until pasta is al dente.
2. While waiting for water to boil and pasta to cook in step one, add olive oil and ham to a pan over medium heat. Let cook until ham is thoroughly warmed and begins to brown. Set aside.
3. Once pasta is ready, drain and place pasta back into the pot. Do not rinse! You need the starch to help the lemon juice stick to the pasta.
4. Mix in the zest and juice from the two lemons, as well as, the parsley.
5. Add salt & pepper to taste.
6. Place pasta in serving dishes and sprinkle ham on top. You may also want to add a little parsley on top to garnish.

Enjoy!