Lazy Person's Creamy Prosciutto Cotto Arrosto Pasta
Story/recipe and photographs by Tom Weber

Let's have a show of hands from those of you who like cooked ham.

Very good.

Now, let's take that cooked ham, add a few herbs and roast it. Like it even more?

Excellent.

The reason why I'm asking is because the cooked and roasted Italian ham - Prosciutto Cotto Arrosto - is a key ingredient in this Lazy Person recipe that's sure to provide you with a "fork full of Heaven" in each and every bite. And even better than its heavenly taste, this recipe takes less than 15-minutes to prepare, plate and get underway.

Now how LAZY is that?

We call this culinary quickie the Lazy Person's Creamy Prosciutto Cotto Arrosto Pasta - LPCPCAP for short. It's a pasta in bianco - white pasta, no tomato sauce.

Now, a Lazy Person recipe wouldn't be complete without an historical footnote, or, in the case of the LPCPCAP, an historical THIGH note. And I'll sneak it in here, and then on to the recipe.

Let me just put on my cap and gown first. AHEM!

Prosciutto comes from the Latin word perexsuctum, meaning prosciugato in Italian ("dried thoroughly," or "deprived of all liquid").

Prosciutto has been around in Italy since at least the Roman Republic (4-3 BC) and may have been introduced earlier by the Etruscans (8-5 BC), that marvelous tribe that tamed the earth under the sun that we've come to love today, Tuscany.

There are two basic preparation methods. First, Prosciutto Crudo, air-cured ham that's bathed in salt, pepper, pork fat and, sometimes, herbs and sugar, then hung out to dry for up to 16-months. Second, Prosciutto Cotto, boiled ham, which can be further coated with aromatic herbs and then roasted, becoming Prosciutto Cotto Arrosto, and that's where we're headed.

Okay. That's the quick Prosciutto primer. Now we can head into the kitchen. Drum roll, please.

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Lazy Person's Creamy Prosciutto Cotto Arrosto Pasta

Ingredients (per person)

• 90-100 gr (3.0-3.5 oz) of Sedani Rigate or Penne Rigate dried semolina pasta
• 2 large thin slices (40 gr/1.4 oz) of Prosciutto Cotto-Arrosto
• 60 ml (1/3 cup) of Heavy Cream
• 44 gr (3 tablespoons) of grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Grana Padano cheese
• 5 gr (1 teaspoon) freshly ground (medium coarseness) Black Pepper
• 1 Medium-size pot of Boiling Water
• 1 heaping tablespoon of salt

Cooking and Prep Time: 12-15 min. (not including time to boil the water)

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Step-1: Fill the pot with water, cover, set burner on HIGH and begin the boiling process

Step-2: While waiting for the water to boil, weigh the pasta.

Step-3: Measure the cream and grate the cheese

Step-4: Cut the ham into bite-size pieces

Step-5: As the water comes to a roaring boil, uncover, add the salt, drop the pasta down, stir vigorously and then wait 10-min.

Step-6: You've now got 10-min. to kill. So, set the table, uncork the wine and unleash some Andrea Bocelli around the house to sweep you away to the Bel Paese while you wait.

Step-7: At the 9-min. mark of the cooking pasta, remove a piece and check its al dente status. The pasta needs to be firm, but not hard. Continue taking samples until its just right.

Step-8: Drain the pasta and reintroduce it into the now empty pot. Turn the burner up to MEDIUM-HIGH, add the cream and begin stirring vigorously.

Step-9: Right on the heels of Step-8 add the grated cheese and continue stirring.

Step-10: On the heels of Step-9 add the pieces of ham and continue stirring until the cream has reduced to a slightly thick-not-runny consistency (about 1.5-2 min. from the start of Step-8).

Step-11: Remove from heat, plate the pasta, add freshly ground black pepper and serve.

Wine Pairing: Bardolino Chiaretto DOC - Cantina di Soave (VR), Italy - A rosé with a fruity bouquet, including raspberry and pomegranate. Well-balanced, it has a fine crispness and fragrance. The palate is harmonious with slightly bitter nuances. Due to its light character, it marries well with light foods, cheeses and pasta dishes, like the LPCPCAP. Enjoy at 10-12 °C (50-53 °F).

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Not too shabby for someone who really doesn't have much of a clue around the kitchen and is just plain LAZY, right?

Now it's your turn. Have fun. Don't panic. And, most importantly, Buon Appetito!