This is one of my favorite ways to eat pasta, especially ribbony ones like fettuccine and pappardelle. And it's also one of the easiest ways to make it.

I first ate this utterly simple but surprisingly flavorful pasta at the home of one of Desi's colleagues who had invited us to dinner. I had never been a huge fan of parsley because, perhaps like every Indian who's migrated to the United States, I bought it the first time in error-- thinking it was coriander, the herb we Indians cannot live without. I went ahead and added it to my curry and imagine my disappointment when instead of the fresh, lemony, spicy bite of cilantro, I tasted the herby but understated parsley.

I am too much of an herbivore to turn my back on anything green forever and over the years I did learn to enjoy parsley in dishes like tabbouleh and in soups. But it was Barbara's pasta that made me fall unequivocally in love with this herb.

One of the reasons, perhaps, is that it is the star ingredient here and it adds a fresh note to the pasta dressed in nothing else but some fruity, extra-virgin olive oil, garlic, salt, and-- my addition-- a few red pepper flakes.

On to the recipe. Hope everyone had a great weekend and is all set for a lovely week ahead because at the end of it lies...another weekend!