Wine With…Pasta, Peas, Pancetta & Pesto

“Don’t play with your food!” Remember that cranky command issued to kids by a well-meaning parent or teacher? In our adult lives we’ve turned the directive around. Now, especially during the warm, languid days of summer, we often remind ourselves to play with our food more often–to approach menu planning, recipe development and, yes, sometimes even wine selections, in a lighthearted spirit.

Much of our inspiration comes from our friends Margianne and Arthur, who’ve dreamed up a food-themed game that involves dishes whose main ingredients all begin with the same letter of the alphabet. In a recent adaptation of the challenge, we settled on the letter “P,” for the simple reason that fresh peas are now in season. The resulting dish was delectable on its own and even better with a wide range of lively-tasting wines. Some day we might even build on the theme by using penne (instead of fettuccine), and by adding plum tomatoes, peppers, and/or porcini mushrooms–keeping in mind, of course, that new ingredients will affect the dish’s kinship with the wine.

For this particular gastro game we didn’t include the wine selection, but there’s no doubt that doing so could add an extra dimension to the experiment. Zucchini fritters with Zinfandel anyone?

Pasta with “Ps”

Serves 4

1 small onion, finely minced
1 cup olive oil (divided use)
6 ounces pancetta, minced
1 cup peas (preferable fresh, though frozen is an acceptable substitute)
1 ½ pounds fettuccine or other pasta
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons pine nuts
1 ½ cups fresh basil leaves, lightly packed
½ cup parsley leaves, lightly packed
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more to pass at the table
salt
freshly ground pepper

In a small skillet cook the onion in one tablespoon of the olive oil for about a minute, then add the pancetta and continue cooking until the onions are soft and the pancetta is beginning to crisp and brown. (This step may be done ahead.)

Drop the peas into boiling water and simmer no more than 30 seconds. Drain the peas immediately and refresh them in cold water.

Place the garlic and pine nuts in a blender. Tear or coarsely chop the basil leaves and parsley and add them to the blender along with the cheese. Pulse until finely chopped, then add the oil and blend until mixture is fairly smooth and runny. Season with salt and pepper to taste. (May be made ahead.)

Just before serving reheat the onion and pancetta mixture if necessary. Cook the pasta according to package instructions. When finished cooking. drain and transfer the pasta to a serving bowl. Toss it with the pesto and scatter the pancetta over the top. Serve immediately, passing extra cheese at the table.