Asparagus Pesto With Tiny Potatoes And Pasta Recipes

ASPARAGUS NOODLES WITH PESTO

Steps:

• Snap off the woody ends of the asparagus stalks. Use a vegetable peeler to shave the asparagus into thin wide ribbons. (The last strip of asparagus will be a little thicker than the others but it¿s fine to use.)
• Pulse the basil, parsley, pine nuts, capers, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper in a food processor until coarsely ground. With the machine running, drizzle in 1/4 cup olive oil and process until the pesto is mostly smooth.
• Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the asparagus noodles, red pepper flakes and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until the asparagus is tender, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Add the arugula and cook until just wilted, about 1 minute. Remove from the heat; add the pesto and 1 tablespoon water and toss to coat. Stir in the lemon zest and season with salt. Top with more zest.

ASPARAGUS PESTO PASTA

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.

PARMESAN-TOPPED PASTA WITH ASPARAGUS AND BACON

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook linguine at a boil until tender yet firm to the bite, about 11 minutes. Drain.
• Meanwhile, cook diced bacon in a pan over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until nice and crispy, 7 to 10 minutes. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Remove and discard all but 1 tablespoon grease from the pan.
• Saute asparagus in the bacon grease over medium heat until crisp-tender, about 10 minutes; try to avoid overcooking it. Remove asparagus to a bowl.
• Add wine and give the bottom of a pan a good stir to scrape off any brown bits. Let boil until reduced by about 1/2, about 3 minutes, adding more wine if desired. Add drained pasta, asparagus, bacon, and 1/2 of the Parmesan cheese; toss to coat. Sprinkle remaining Parmesan over top.

PASTA WITH ASPARAGUS

Steps:

• In a large cast-iron or other heavy skillet, cook the garlic, red pepper flakes and hot pepper sauce in oil and butter for 1 minute. Add the asparagus, salt and pepper; saute until asparagus is crisp-tender, 8-10 minutes. Stir in cheese. Pour over hot pasta and toss to coat. Serve immediately.

ASPARAGUS WITH BASIL PESTO MAYONNAISE

Steps:

• Snap or cut off tough ends of asparagus spears. In 12-inch skillet, heat 1/2 inch water (salted if desired) to boiling. Add asparagus; reduce heat to medium-low. Cover; simmer 2 to 3 minutes or until crisp-tender. Drain. Plunge asparagus into bowl of ice water to cool; drain on paper towels. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
• In small bowl, mix remaining ingredients, except basil leaves.
• Spoon mayonnaise mixture into small serving bowl; garnish with basil leaves. Serve with blanched asparagus.

PASTA, GREEN BEANS AND POTATOES WITH PESTO

Steps:

• Make pesto: In the bowl of food processor, add basil, pine nuts, salt and garlic. Pulse until mixture is coarse and grainy. With the motor running, add oil in slow, steady stream. Add cheese; process just enough to mix well. If sauce is too dry, add a little more oil. Taste; add more cheese or salt, if desired.
• Bring 6 quarts water to rolling boil. Add at least 2 tablespoons salt and the potato slices. Cook for about 5 minutes, or until potatoes have started to soften but are not cooked through. Add green beans, and continue boiling another 5 minutes.
• Add pasta, and stir. Start testing pasta at 5 minutes. When it is done, and when potatoes and beans are tender, drain and turn pasta and vegetables immediately into preheated bowl. Add pesto, and mix thoroughly. Serve immediately.

CREAMY CHICKEN-ASPARAGUS PASTA

Steps:

• To toast pine nuts, sprinkle in ungreased heavy skillet. Cook over medium heat 3 to 5 minutes, stirring frequently until nuts begin to brown, then stirring constantly until nuts are light brown. Remove from skillet to plate; set aside to cool.
• Cook and drain noodles as directed on package, adding asparagus during last 3 minutes of cooking time.
• Meanwhile, in 3-quart saucepan, heat Alfredo sauce to boiling. Stir in pesto with whisk. Stir in chicken and salt.
• Reserve 1/4 cup asparagus for garnish. Stir noodles and remaining asparagus into Alfredo-pesto mixture. Cook and stir over medium heat until hot. Sprinkle with toasted pine nuts and cheese; garnish with tomato and reserved asparagus.