Asparagus Pesto Pasta Food

ASPARAGUS PESTO WITH TINY POTATOES AND PASTA

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.

ASPARAGUS PESTO PASTA

Steps:

• Prepare pasta according to package directions. When ready, drain and then toss with remaining tablespoon of olive oil.
• Meanwhile, combine asparagus, basil, Parmesan cheese, garlic, pecans, and 2 tablespoons olive oil in a blender or food processor and process until smooth.
• Serve asparagus pesto over prepared pasta.

LINGUINE WITH ASPARAGUS PESTO

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.

ASPARAGUS PASTA WITH MINT PESTO

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.

PASTA WITH ASPARAGUS PESTO

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

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).