Penne Pasta with Asparagus Recipe
Yum!
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 bunch asparagus ends trimmed and cut into 1½ inch pieces
- 2 medium onions chopped
- 4 cloves garlic cloves finely minced
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes whole or sliced
- ½ cup peas
- 1 tablespoon fresh basil
- 1 tablespoon fresh tarragon
- ½ tablespoon fresh oregano
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese grated, with additional cheese to garnish
- salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1 pound penne pasta
- ¼ cup pine nuts toasted
Instructions
- Start by heating up a large pot of water to cook the pasta.
- Trim the ends of the asparagus and then cut each stalk into ½ inch pieces.
- Chop the onions finely and mince the garlic.
- Finely chop the basil, tarragon & oregano.
- Grate your Parmesan cheese or have it standing by in a cheese grater.
- When the water comes to a boil, add some salt and then the pasta and cook to al dente. If you have done all the prepping while the water comes to a boil, the sauce should be done about the same time the pasta takes to cook.It is better to have the pasta under-cooked since you will be finishing it off in the sauce but try not to overcook the pasta so it loses its crispness.
- While the pasta is cooking, heat up a large sized sauté pan or fry pan over medium-high heat. You could also cook this in a large saucepan.
- Add the butter and oil and when hot, add the asparagus and sauté for about 3 minutes. Remove the asparagus from the pan and keep warm.
- Add the onions, garlic & a little more olive oil if needed to the pan and sauté until the onions become translucent & golden in color, about 8 - 10 minutes.
- Now add the cherry tomatoes, peas, basil, tarragon, oregano and season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper.
- At this point, I like to take about ¼ cup of the water the pasta has been cooking in and add it to the sauce. Let the sauce come to a boil and then reduce the heat to medium and let the sauce simmer until it thickens about 8 minutes.
- Add the asparagus back to the pan and cook until tender but still crisp, 3 to 4 minutes.
- Add the pasta to the pan, along with the grated Parmesan and toss gently. Taste and adjust seasonings with salt and pepper.
Notes
If you like it a little spicier, you can always add a shake from the hot red pepper flakes in the back of your spice cabinet. Be careful, a little goes a long way.
Serve family style in one big bowl or individually plate the pasta and have some extra grated Parmesan cheese on hand.