One-Pot Creamy Pasta With Carrots and Peas
Updated October 16, 2025
- Ready In
- 20 min
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Ingredients
Fine sea salt
8 ounces short pasta (penne, fusilli or elbow macaroni)
2 medium carrots, diced into ¼-inch pieces
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup frozen peas
2 garlic cloves, minced or crushed in a press
½ teaspoon ground turmeric
¼ teaspoon ground white or black pepper
½ cup heavy cream
¾ cup chopped cooked turkey, ham or shredded cooked chicken (optional)
Grated Parmesan (optional), for serving
Nutritional analysis per serving (2 to 4 servings)
52 grams carbs; 61 milligrams cholesterol; 430 calories; 6 grams monosaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 8 grams saturated fat; 17 grams fat; 4 grams fiber; 426 milligrams sodium; 18 grams protein; 6 grams sugar
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Stir in the pasta and cook until just al dente, adding the carrots to the pot during the last 4 minutes of cooking so they finish at the same time. Reserve ½ cup pasta cooking water, then drain the pasta and carrots and set aside.
- Step 2
In the same pot, heat the olive oil over medium-low. Add the peas, garlic, turmeric, ground pepper and ½ teaspoon salt. Cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the cream and simmer for 3 minutes, until the peas are tender. If using turkey, ham or chicken, stir it in now.
- Step 3
Add the pasta mixture to the sauce along with ¼ cup of the reserved pasta cooking water, and toss to coat. Continue to toss until the pasta and the carrots are cooked, adding more cooking water as needed to achieve a glossy sauce that clings to the pasta, about 2 minutes.
- Step 4
Serve warm, topped with Parmesan if desired.
Private Notes
Comments
I use always use petite frozen peas and add them at the end of heating/cooking other ingredients. The residual heat cooks them enough. They stay bright green and sweet, which was more appealing to my children. Hope this tips helps.
I used 2 cups frozen peas and carrots. Added when the recipe said to add the peas - timesaver when the kids are hangry
This pasta is so easy I was able to make it while holding my 20 month old. Dicing the carrots was a challenge... My three year old didn't like the idea of it, but I offered both this and simple buttered noodles and she ate this! And seconds! Would recommend under cooking the pasta as it took a while for the sauce to get thick enough and the pasta was more than al dente by then (my preference).
Definitely easy but very bland which makes it pretty kid friendly. My daughter opted to add soy sauce to hers which jazzed it up enough for me to eat.
We thought this was just ok, I followed the directions almost exactly (with the addition of nutmeg someone suggested, and adding the carrots earlier than 4 minutes) and it came out pretty bland. I added some chicken broth and butter at the end to help round it out. It's a good meal to keep in the fridge for lunches/meal prep though, so next time I might skip the heavy cream altogether and just use chicken broth instead.
Claire, I had the same reaction-bland, and the carrots needed more time.
Five stars for ease, taste, and quickness. I did make a change or two, because I was using what we had: cream cheese subbed for the heavy cream, for instance. I also used a separate pan to cook some onions, along with the ham and peas, which meant two pans to wash, but no biggie. Excellent, satisfying dinner!