Indulge in a symphony of flavors with our delectable Pasta with Asparagus Pesto recipe. This dish combines the vibrant green hues of fresh asparagus with the aromatic basil pesto, creating a visually stunning and tantalizing culinary experience. The asparagus, at its peak in spring, lends a crisp texture and a slightly sweet, earthy flavor to the dish. The pesto, a vibrant green sauce made from fresh basil, pine nuts, garlic, olive oil, and Parmesan cheese, adds a burst of herbaceousness and nutty richness. Tossed together with cooked pasta, the asparagus and pesto create a harmonious union of flavors and textures, making every bite a delight.
In addition to the classic Pasta with Asparagus Pesto, this article also offers variations to cater to different preferences and dietary needs. For a vegan delight, try the Vegan Asparagus Pesto Pasta, where cashew and nutritional yeast replace the Parmesan cheese, resulting in a creamy and flavorful pesto that's entirely plant-based. If you're gluten-free, the Gluten-Free Asparagus Pesto Pasta uses gluten-free pasta to ensure everyone can enjoy this springtime treat. And for those who prefer a lighter option, the Asparagus Pesto with Chicken and Zucchini incorporates grilled chicken and zucchini, adding a protein boost and a medley of flavors to the dish.
Each recipe is carefully crafted to highlight the unique characteristics of asparagus and pesto, while offering a range of options to suit various dietary preferences and tastes. Whether you're a vegetarian, vegan, or simply seeking a delicious and nutritious meal, these recipes promise a culinary journey that will leave you craving for more.
ASPARAGUS PESTO PASTA
Provided by Food Network Kitchen
Categories side-dish
Time 20m
Yield 4 to 6 servings
Number Of Ingredients 0
Steps:
- Cook 1 pound trimmed asparagus in salted boiling water until crisp-tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and transfer to ice water to cool; drain and pat dry, then roughly chop. Puree the asparagus in a food processor with 1 cup fresh parsley, 1/2 cup fresh mint, 1/3 cup toasted unsalted pistachios, 1 garlic clove, 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest, 1 teaspoon kosher salt and a few grinds of pepper. Drizzle in 1/3 cup olive oil and puree until smooth. Toss with 1 pound cooked pasta and 3/4 cup parmesan, adding pasta cooking water as needed to loosen.
FUSILLI IN CREAMY VEGAN ASPARAGUS PESTO
Cashews make this creamy asparagus pasta sauce rich without any cream. Try this vegan pasta recipe if you're looking to cook with cholesterol in mind.
Provided by Joy Manning
Time 40m
Yield 4 servings
Number Of Ingredients 8
Steps:
- Process 1 garlic clove in a blender until finely chopped. Add ⅓ cup cashews and 1 Tbsp. Diamond Crystal or 1 ¾ tsp. Morton kosher salt and blend until cashews are finely chopped, about 30 seconds. Add 1 cup packed basil leaves and half of asparagus (about 4 oz.) and process until a smooth paste forms, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. With processor running, stream in ⅓ cup olive oil and 2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice until combined.
- Cook 12 oz. whole wheat fusilli in a large pot of boiling salted water for 1 minute less than package directions. Add remaining asparagus and cook for 1 minute more. Reserve 1 cup pasta cooking liquid, then drain pasta and asparagus.
- Return pasta and asparagus to pot and add pesto. Toss, adding pasta cooking liquid ¼ cup at a time, until desired texture is achieved. Top each serving with additional basil leaves.
ASPARAGUS PESTO WITH PASTA
Steps:
- Bring 2 pots of water to a rolling boil: one large for the pasta and one medium sized for the asparagus.
SPRING PESTO PASTA WITH ASPARAGUS
Spring pesto pasta with asparagus and chives is light and made with simple ingredients in under 20 minutes. Serve it hot for dinner or cold as pasta salad.
Provided by Sam | Ahead of Thyme
Categories Pasta
Time 20m
Number Of Ingredients 7
Steps:
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and add asparagus. Cook for 3 minutes, then remove with a slotted spoon and place in a bowl of ice water. Let cool, then drain.
- Bring the same pot of water back up to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 11 minutes, or until al dente. Then drain, reserving about 1/4 cup of cooking water.
- In a large bowl, combine pasta, asparagus, and basil pesto. Toss until pasta is evenly coated with pesto. If the sauce is too thick, begin pouring in some reserved pasta water (about 2 tablespoons at a time) until the sauce reaches desired consistency. Add chives, lemon zest, and mozzarella, and stir until just combined.
- Divide pasta into bowls and top with Parmesan cheese. If eating immediately, serve hot. You can also serve it cold or at room temperature as a delicious vegetarian pasta salad.
Nutrition Facts : ServingSize 1 serving, Calories 411 calories, Sugar 3.2 g, Sodium 287.9 mg, Fat 12.1 g, SaturatedFat 2.4 g, TransFat 0 g, Carbohydrate 59.5 g, Fiber 3.7 g, Protein 15.4 g, Cholesterol 3.5 mg
LINGUINE WITH ASPARAGUS PESTO
Asparagus dresses this spring pasta in pastel green. Use the stems to make a finely ground pestolike mixture with garlic, olive oil and cheese; reserve the tips for quickly cooking and then tossing into the skillet with the linguine and sauce just before serving.
Provided by Florence Fabricant
Categories dinner, pastas, main course
Time 40m
Yield 4 servings
Number Of Ingredients 8
Steps:
- Snap off and discard ends of asparagus. Cut off top two inches of spears and reserve. Chop rest of spears and put in food processor with garlic, processing until very finely minced. With the machine running, drizzle in olive oil. Add 1/2 cup cheese and pulse. Transfer mixture to a bowl, fold in lemon zest, season with salt and pepper and set aside.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add pasta and cook about 6 minutes, until not quite al dente. Add asparagus spears to the pot and cook another 1 to 2 minutes, until pasta is al dente.
- Spoon 1/4 cup pasta water into a large skillet. Drain pasta and asparagus tips and add to skillet along with asparagus mixture and lemon juice. Cook over low heat, stirring with tongs, 3 minutes or so, until ingredients are well blended. Check seasonings. Transfer to 4 warm plates, scatter with oregano and serve with extra cheese.
Nutrition Facts : @context http, Calories 577, UnsaturatedFat 19 grams, Carbohydrate 70 grams, Fat 25 grams, Fiber 6 grams, Protein 18 grams, SaturatedFat 5 grams, Sodium 455 milligrams, Sugar 4 grams
ASPARAGUS PESTO WITH TINY POTATOES AND PASTA
Provided by Michael Chiarello : Food Network
Categories main-dish
Time 1h
Yield 4 servings
Number Of Ingredients 12
Steps:
- Pesto:
- Cut the cooked asparagus spears into thirds. Put in a food processor with the basil, pine nuts, garlic, and salt and pepper, to taste. Keep in mind you will add Parmesan as well, so be careful not to oversalt. With the machine running, slowly add the cup of olive oil. When the sauce is about the consistency of mayonnaise, it has enough oil. Pulse in the Parmesan. Thin with water if necessary to achieve a slick, saucy pesto. Scrape into a bowl or jar, cover, and refrigerate until needed. You should have about 3 cups. (Keeps about 2 to 3 days, refrigerated.)
- Put the potatoes in a pan of salted cold water to cover and bring to a boil. Cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain and let cool for a few minutes. If the potatoes are larger than about 1/2 inch in diameter, cut in half.
- Heat the olive oil in a medium saute pan over medium-high heat until hot. Add the potatoes and cook until browned and crispy all over, about 5 minutes. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Keep warm. Add basil, toss with potatoes and set aside.
- While the potatoes are browning, return the water used for cooking the asparagus, if reserved, to a boil or brint a new pot of water to a boil. Add more salt and the pasta and cook until al dente, about 12 minutes. Drain through a colander, reserving about 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water. Pour the pasta into a warm serving bowl, add the potatoes, about 1 cup of the asparagus pesto, several twists of pepper, and 1/4 cup of the Parmesan. Toss well, thinning with the pasta cooking water as necessary.
- Dust with a light grating of Parmesan (a microplane grater works well for this) before serving and pass the remaining cheese and a bowl of pesto at the table.
PASTA WITH ASPARAGUS PESTO
Provided by Nathan Sivin
Categories Garlic Pasta Vegetarian Kid-Friendly Dinner Parmesan Pine Nut Asparagus Spring Healthy Gourmet Pennsylvania Pescatarian Peanut Free Soy Free No Sugar Added Kosher Small Plates
Yield Serves 4 as a main course
Number Of Ingredients 7
Steps:
- In a 6- to 7-quart kettle bring about 5 quarts salted water to a boil for pasta.
- Have ready a bowl of ice water. Trim woody ends from asparagus. Cut asparagus stalks crosswise into 2-inch pieces, reserving tips. In a steamer set over boiling water steam stalks, covered, 4 minutes. Add reserved asparagus tips and steam, covered, until just tender, about 1 minute. Immediately transfer asparagus to ice water to stop cooking. Drain asparagus well in a colander and pat dry.
- In a food processor pulse pine nuts and garlic with salt until finely chopped. Add asparagus and oil and pulse until asparagus is coarsely chopped. Transfer pesto to a large bowl and stir in Parmigiano-Reggiano. Cook pasta in boiling water until al dente. Reserve 1/3 cup pasta cooking water and drain pasta in a colander. Add pasta and reserved cooking water to pesto, tossing to coat, and season with salt and pepper.
ASPARAGUS PESTO
Making asparagus pesto lets you use the peel, which contains a ton of flavor even though it's sometimes too tough and stringy to eat. Puréeing lets you sidestep this issue: you keep the peel, and the flavor, but your food processor pulverizes the fibers, even if you use thick spears.
Provided by Mark Bittman
Categories easy, quick, weekday, condiments, dips and spreads
Time 20m
Yield 4 to 6 servings (about 1 1/2 cups)
Number Of Ingredients 8
Steps:
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it. Add the asparagus and cook until fully tender but not mushy, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain well, reserving some of the cooking liquid, and let the asparagus cool slightly.
- Transfer the asparagus to a food processor and add the garlic, pine nuts, 2 tablespoons of the oil, Parmesan, a pinch of salt and a couple of tablespoons of the cooking liquid. Process the mixture, stopping to scrape down the sides of the container if necessary, and gradually add the remaining oil and a bit more of the reserved cooking liquid to moisten if necessary. Add the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper to taste, pulse one last time, and serve over pasta, fish or chicken (or cover and refrigerate for up to a day).
Nutrition Facts : @context http, Calories 191, UnsaturatedFat 12 grams, Carbohydrate 5 grams, Fat 17 grams, Fiber 2 grams, Protein 8 grams, SaturatedFat 4 grams, Sodium 256 milligrams, Sugar 2 grams
ASPARAGUS PASTA WITH MINT PESTO
A simple solution to dinner made with simple ingredients. Asparagus is at its best around May
Provided by Good Food team
Categories Dinner, Main course, Pasta, Snack, Supper
Time 15m
Number Of Ingredients 5
Steps:
- In a food processor, briefly whizz the mint leaves, ricotta and grated Parmesan until you have a smooth green pesto. Season well.
- Boil the pasta, dropping in the asparagus tips 2-3 mins before the cooking time is up. When you drain the pasta, keep back a few tbsp of the water, then return the pasta, asparagus and water to the saucepan.
- Quickly stir in the mint pesto, divide between 4 plates, then shave over the remaining Parmesan to serve.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 507 calories, Fat 13 grams fat, SaturatedFat 7 grams saturated fat, Carbohydrate 7 grams carbohydrates, Sugar 5 grams sugar, Fiber 4 grams fiber, Protein 79 grams protein, Sodium 0.43 milligram of sodium
Tips:
- Choose the right asparagus. Look for asparagus spears that are bright green and have tightly closed tips. Avoid spears that are wilted or have brown or yellow spots.
- Cook the asparagus properly. Asparagus can be cooked in a variety of ways, but the most popular methods are steaming, roasting, and grilling. No matter which method you choose, be sure to cook the asparagus until it is tender but still has a slight crunch.
- Make the pesto ahead of time. Pesto can be made up to 3 days in advance and stored in the refrigerator. This makes it a great option for busy weeknights.
- Use a variety of nuts in your pesto. Pine nuts are the traditional nut used in pesto, but you can also use walnuts, almonds, or pistachios. Experiment to find your favorite combination.
- Add some Parmesan cheese to your pesto. Parmesan cheese adds a salty, nutty flavor to pesto. It also helps to thicken the sauce.
- Serve the pasta with a side salad. A simple salad of mixed greens, tomatoes, and vinaigrette is a great way to round out the meal.
Conclusion:
Pasta with asparagus pesto is a delicious and easy-to-make dish that is perfect for a weeknight meal. The asparagus and pesto are a great combination of flavors, and the pasta makes the dish hearty and filling. With a few simple tips, you can make this dish even better.
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