The title of this post says it all. With the yo-yoing weather we’ve had over the last few weeks, I am doing my best to feel the warming of spring the only way I know how - through cooking. If I can’t have a proper spring outside, I can at least have one in my kitchen.
Some of my favorite dishes just come down to fresh ingredients, and Pasta Primavera (‘spring pasta’) is a great example of straightforward, simple cooking. Feel free to substitute other green vegetables, whatever looks bright and crisp at your local market will go great in a lighter pasta dish like this one. Seasonality is key!
Finishing the pasta with a small pop of acid, something like lemon juice or white wine vinegar wakes up the senses and brightens up the entire dish. You can also add some fresh seasonal herbs like basil, tarragon or thyme. There are tons of ways to play around with this dish so let’s manifest some spring weather together and get cooking.
Pasta Primavera
Serves 4-6
Prep time: 30 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes
Total time: 1 hour
1 lb of orecchiette pasta (or pasta of your choice)
1-2 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
1 small onion, small dice
1 small zucchini, sliced on a bias
1 pint of cherry tomatoes, cut in half lengthwise
1 lb asparagus, sliced into 1” pieces on a bias (blanched and shocked see below)
1 bunch of spinach, torn by hand
1 cup of frozen or fresh spring peas
Dried basil to taste
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup to 1/2 cup reserved pasta water
1 lemon, juiced
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1/4 cup fresh basil, chiffonade
1. Heat a heavy wide pan with extra virgin olive oil on medium. Sauté the onion until slightly softened.
2. Add the zucchini and season with salt, pepper and dried basil. Sauté until lightly caramelized.
3. Add the cherry tomatoes and cook until lightly blistered.
4. While the tomatoes are cooking, bring a large pot of water to boil and add a large pinch of salt to it. Cook the pasta until al dente. Use a measuring cup to reserve at least 1/2 cup of pasta water for the primavera sauce.
5. Add 1/4 cup of pasta water to the pan along with the blanched asparagus and spinach. Cook until the spinach is wilted.
6. Add the cooked pasta along with the frozen or fresh peas.
7. Season with salt, pepper and lemon juice.
8. Top with grated Parmesan cheese and basil and serve.
Blanching and shocking
The best part about Spring is how vibrant and green the vegetables are. Keeping that color can be accomplished through blanching and shocking. Bring a pot of water to a boil with a pinch of salt. Put your green vegetables in the boiling water and blanch until they’re bright green and par-cooked, but still have a bit of bite, especially if you plan to cook them further.
Move them from the boiling water immediately into a bowl of ice water. This stops the cooking process and preserves that beautiful green color.
Speaking of Spring, check out some very on-theme seasonal classes coming up in April:
-
Paris in the Spring Saturday, April 25 6pm
-
Crave Worthy Vegetables Monday, April 27 6pm
