Penne Pasta with Peas and Prosciutto for Poor Us

Inspired by Clara and her depression-era pasta and peas, I decided to do my own take on this meager macaroni. I hope I'm wrong, but I think the next big thing in the food world is going to be these types of "frugal fabulous" recipes.

During this video recipe for penne pasta with peas and prosciutto you're going to see a few of the classic strategies for stretching those dwindling dollars. There's the pasta and beans (get used to seeing those), as well as the see-through width slice of meat (you could read the paper through it, if you could afford the paper).

The hardest part about making this video was resisting the temptation to make the recipe better, but I really wanted to stay true to the mission of achieving maximum flavor and satisfaction, with a minimum of cost and ingredients. The result was a delicious, filling, cheap, and soulful bowl of food. Enjoy!

Note: Vimeo is still having sound issues.



Ingredients:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, diced
a few thin slices prosciutto, chopped
3 cloves minced garlic
1 tsp dried thyme
6 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 tsp salt
fresh ground black pepper to taste
hot red pepper flakes to taste
1 lb frozen peas, thawed
1 15-oz can white beans, drained
14.5-oz box penne pasta
1/2 cup grated Parmesan, optional

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