This recipe was out of this world divine! The recipe is from a healthy magazine, but let me tell you, this was a dish that you very easily could have been served in a high end restaurant. I think the fresh spinach pasta is key, but it could still work with other pasta. I made a few changes, which I’ve noted but I also included the link to the recipe so it’s easily printed. Here goes…

Eating Well magazine. Good, healthy recipes and great tips. I was perusing the March 2020 issue and came upon a beautiful image (not the one above, that one is mine) – Fresh Spinach Pasta, Pancetta, Baby Lima Beans, Spinach and Pecorino Cheese (click to print!). Whoa!  It sounded like utter perfection! It was!

Fresh pasta isn’t always easy to come by. Sometimes you can find it near the refrigerated sauces (like Alfredo sauce) and ravioli, etc. I lucked out and found a fabulous section at Whole Foods that carries it. It is a game-changer! Find the recipe HERE (from the Eating Well magazine website, where you can also print).

There are a few things I changed from the original recipe. The pasta that I bought comes in sheets. Once you select the shape you want (I chose fettuccine) they put the sheet through a machine and into a pretty brown box. Each sheet is approximately 4 oz. The recipe calls for 9 oz., but I bought three sheets. I would absolutely do that again! (This recipe yields 4 servings)…

• I used approximately 12 ounces of fresh spinach pasta
• I used a 12 ounce bag of frozen BUTTER PEAS, thawed
• I used one small yellow onion vs. 1 cup of shallots
• I omitted the dried rosemary
• I didn’t have a lot of pecorino, so I mixed it with parmesan

Those are the only changes I made. I have to say, when I saw the amount of pasta I thought to myself, there is no way this can be 4 servings. It absolutely is! Especially because the original recipe calls for 1 pound of baby lima beans. Filling indeed.

I purchased diced pancetta in front of the deli counter at my local grocery store. They had one package that was a larger dice and the one I chose was diced small. I would absolutely select that one again! Divine!

Because I used BUTTER PEAS vs. LIMA BEANS I needed to cook them longer. They were still very firm (too firm) to serve, so I added a little pasta water and put the lid on the pan, flame on low, and let it steam for a bit. I kept checking and once they were almost done I continued on with the recipe. This would also be good with pre-cooked (maybe not quite all the way done) butter peas – and refrigerated until ready to use.

Just have everything measured out ahead of time and this will be a quick recipe to pull together. I will be on the lookout for baby lima beans for next time!

This is the best Eating Well recipe I’ve ever made. Will make this again and again! I highly encourage you to give it a try! You get the luxury of the pasta and cheese with the wonderful beans that keep you full longer.