Asparagus and pasta. I'm telling you, it's a winning combination. Add in a bit of browned butter and olive oil, and some simple spices and you've got dinner that's ready in 15 minutes and serveable for just about any occasion. This particular combination was born out of real clueless desperation. It was 8:30, I had just gotten back from a run, and I was real hungry. It was one of those nights where fast food was starting to sound real tasty, but wasn't probably the best decision. So, we went with this.
The basic idea is just to cook pasta, throw in some green veggies (peas, asparagus, lima beans, whatever) in with the cooking pasta about 40 seconds before it is done to give them a quick cook. Then you throw together a quick sauce, toss it all up, and you're done.
So, although this is almost infinitely tweak-able, here's how I threw it together.
- 1 lb. pasta
- 1 lb. asparagus, or other green vegetable, cut into bite-sized pieces.
- 2 tbsp. butter
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 1 tbsp. garlic, slivered or minced
- 1 tsp. red pepper flakes
- 1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning, or just rosemary, thyme or basil
- Salt and black pepper
- 1/2 c. shredded cheese (optional) for serving.
Directions:
- Cook pasta in salted water until al dente. About 30 seconds to 1 minute before it is done, throw in your veggies. Reserve one cup of pasta water and drain the rest.
- While pasta is cooking, melt butter and combine with olive oil in small skillet. Once the butter is melted and beginning to brown, add garlic and other spices. Saute for 1 minute or so, until garlic is starting to brown.
- Put 1/2 cup of reserved pasta water in with butter/oil/spices mixture, and bring to a simmer.
- Mix pasta/veggies with Butter/oil/spices/water mixture. Add more pasta water if it is seeming dry.
- Serve, sprinkled with a bit of cheese.
- Devour in place of fast food.
Enjoy!
ceh.
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