Asparagus pasta – three simple ways

It’s spring and the height of asparagus season, so for many of us we really indulge eating and enjoying asparagus until, maybe, we’ve overdone eating asparagus until next spring!

If you’re looking for quick, easy and seasonally yummy meals ready in well under 15 minutes and you love asparagus, check these out and look at how few ingredients are required…

·         A bunch of asparagus…. of course

·         Spaghetti

·         Olive oil

·         Parmesan

·         Salt and pepper

·         Either portobello mushrooms for version 2 or pancetta/bacon for version 3

As you can see these are not creamy, rich dishes but still very flavorsome. Follow the base recipe below for all three and further down I will give you the tweaks for versions 2 and 3. Enjoy the asparagus while it’s here

Spaghetti with asparagus

Ingredients

 125 gms spaghetti. I’ve used spaghetti but you could use other past such as linguini– about quarter of a 500 gm packet, but don’t be too fussy!

1 bunch of asparagus – up to you whether you prefer thin or fat asparagus. My preference is somewhere in between

Olive oil

100 gms or more of grated parmesan

If you love garlic, by all means add

Cooking instructions

• Bring a pot of water to the boil and cook the pasta as per the packet instructions (about 8-11 mins)
• Trim the asparagus and discard the ends. Cut what is left in half
• Cook the asparagus how you like to do it. I put it in a dish with a sprinkling of water and into the microwave for one minute, drain it, season with salt and pepper and then cook it in a non-stick pan for around 5-6 minutes with some olive oil on a medium heat turning occasionally until cooked and slightly “browned”
• When the pasta is cooked, drain and add to the pan with the asparagus. Add half the parmesan and gently mix
• Serve from the pan adding the rest of the grated parmesan to taste. You can of course serve this dish from a serving bowl if you prefer, but that’s an extra dish to wash!

You can add a swig of olive oil to the dish before serving or save some of the pasta water( the water you cooked the pasta in) and add a little to the dish if you prefer a slightly “wetter” pasta dish

Spaghetti with asparagus and portobello mushrooms

Ingredients

Simply add 3-4 good size portobello mushrooms, thickly sliced. A tablespoon of chopped thyme enhances the flavour. Cook with the mushrooms

Cooking instructions

·         Before cooking the asparagus, quickly sauté the mushrooms in a little olive oil, adding a bit more as they cook if necessary. Cook just for 1-2 minutes and put aside

·         When the asparagus is cooked add the mushrooms and gently mix in with the asparagus and then the pasta

Spaghetti with asparagus and pancetta/bacon

Ingredients

 Simply add one packet of pancetta or around 200 gms of streaky bacon

Cooking instructions

• Cut the pancetta into lots of strips about 4cms long
• In a non-stick frypan, drop a small amount of olive oil and on low-med heat, gently fry the pancetta until crispy– it should take about 2 mins. Remove and place on some handee towel. Alternatively use bacon. Save around half of the oil to cook the asparagus

·         When the asparagus is cooked add the pancetta and gently mix in with the asparagus and then the pasta

There you go, three different asparagus pasta recipes – we’ve already had all three this spring!

Enjoy it while it lasts

Serves 2 and simply double the recipe for 4