Orecchiette, Caramelized Onions, Sugar Snap Peas & Ricotta

I found this awesome recipe in bon appettit magazine. We love it! I always find that it takes a little longer to get the onions the way I like them than the recipe says so allow a little extra time for that. For the best technique for the onions I use Caramelized Onions. It's the best way I've found to do them.

• Ready In: 35 mins
• Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 2  tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 4  cups  packed chopped onions
• 1 (8 ounce) package  trimmed sugar snap peas, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 (8 ounce) package  orecchiette (little ear-shaped pasta) or 1 (8 ounce) package pasta shells
• 1⁄2 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
• 1⁄4 cup  torn fresh basil leaf
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons  finely grated lemon peel

Directions

1. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions. Sauté until onions are pale golden, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium; sauté onions until tender and deep golden, about 15 minutes longer. Transfer 3/4 cup sautéed onions to small bowl; reserve for frittata. Add peas to onions in skillet. Sauté until peas are crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Remove skillet from heat.
2. Cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite. Drain pasta, reserving 1 cup cooking liquid.
3. Add pasta and 1/2 cup cooking liquid to onion mixture; stir over medium-high heat 30 seconds. Mix in ricotta, basil, and lemon peel, adding more cooking liquid to moisten as needed. Season with salt and pepper.