This quick ham and cheese pasta recipe is the result of feeling like the lockdown has had me spend more time in the kitchen than I would want. Sometimes it’s a never-ending cycle and you just want a break! With all the worrying that is mentally draining. And work which can take its toll, sometimes the last thing you need is to toil for hours on end over dinner.
Well, I cannot help with the “no homemade dinner tonight” part. But what I can offer is this quick ham and cheese pasta that when made simultaneously will be ready in 10 minutes. How cool is that?
And there’s more. Do you have children? Well then, everyone can dig in! I made this for myself and my kids (22 months and 4 years – at the time of writing). And I have to admit it was a relief to be able to make one meal for all and have everyone enjoy it. Really, I didn’t hear one peep from either one of them. And that for me is a very successful lunch!
This recipe yields portions enough for either 2 adults or 1 adult and 2 children 🙂
So when you are not using your diced ham on some ham and cheese scramble that my little one shockingly can’t seem to get enough of, then make this simple ham and cheese pasta.
Ham and Cheese Pasta Ingredients & Substitutes
Cheese: I used a Grana Padano. Why? Because it tastes milder than parmesan or Parmigiano Reggiano. And since the ham is quite flavourful and salty I felt there was no need for anything more intense. Can you use parmesan or Parmigiano? Yes, you can.
Passata: I am a Mutti (not sponsored, I just like their products) fan all the way. I used the ready-made passata, which I find to be a little sweet and I realized when using it for pasta, doesn’t need much reducing or cooking. I only used a little passata to give the pasta, ham, and cheese something to ‘glue’ them together. Otherwise, if you do not have passata you can use canned tomato. Here’s what to do:
How to Make Tomato Passata And Use for This Pasta Recipe
1. Purée the tomato, and sieve out the seeds.
2. After the ham has sautéed for the suggested time, pour in the tomato purée, stir through, and reduce it for about 5 minutes on medium-high heat. You want it to thicken slightly but not too much. Stir occasionally.
3. Add the pasta and cheese, serve.
Pasta: to be honest I used orecchiette because it’s easier for my 22-month-old to feed herself compared to using something like tortiglioni pasta. So feel free to use other short pasta shapes but I wouldn’t recommend long pasta for this recipe.
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Other Ham Pasta Recipes You Might Like
Tortiglioni with Ham and Cream
What some may consider as more of comfort food. It is a little heavy, made with thinly sliced ham, cream, and parmesan.
10 minute ham and cheese pasta
(+5 rating, 1 votes)
Loading...Quick and delicious ham and cheese pasta that is ready in 10 minutes.
Ingredients
- 200g orecchiette pasta
- 150g cubed prosciutto cotto
- 50g grated Grana Padano
- 150ml passata
- Salt to taste
Instructions
Bring water to a boil (in the meantime start preparing the ham)
Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a non-stick pan over medium-high heat. Toss in the cubed ham and sauté for 8 minutes stirring occasionally
While the ham cooks, toss the pasta into the boiling water with 1/2 tsp of salt to cook until al dente
After 8 minutes pour the passata onto the ham and stir through, leave to reduce for about 5 minutes if using homemade puréed canned tomato. If using store-bought passata let that cook for about 3 minutes.
Drain the pasta and toss with the ham and tomato sauce. Sprinkle in the grated Grana Padano and stir through
Serve
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