Green Pasta Recipes

MEDITERRANEAN PASTA WITH GREENS

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Stir in pasta, cook for 10 to 12 minutes, until al dente, and drain.
• Place chard in a microwave safe bowl. Fill bowl about 1/2 full with water. Cook on High in the microwave 5 minutes, until limp; drain.
• Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the sun-dried tomatoes, kalamata olives, green olives, and garlic. Mix in the chard. Cook and stir until tender. Toss with pasta and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese to serve.

MEAN GREEN PASTA CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• For the pasta: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the penne and cook until al dente according to the package instructions. Drain and set aside.
• For the pureed greens: Meanwhile, add the spinach, arugula, basil, mint, parsley, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper and garlic to a food processor. With the machine running, drizzle in the olive oil and puree. Stop before the mixture is completely smooth; you want a bit of texture. Set aside.
• For the cheese sauce: Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Sprinkle in the flour and mustard powder, whisking to combine. Cook, whisking constantly, for a minute or so. Pour in the milk, whisking constantly. Cook the sauce until thick and bubbly, 3 to 5 minutes. Whisk in the half-and-half, salt and pepper. Add the Cheddar, fontina and Monterey Jack. Stir until the cheese all melts.
• For the assembly: Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking pan.
• Combine the melted butter, breadcrumbs and parsley in a small bowl.
• Add the cooked penne to the cheese sauce, making sure every noodle is covered in sauce. Next, stir in the pureed greens until barely combined. Pour the pasta mixture into the buttered baking pan and top evenly with the breadcrumbs. Bake until bubbly and golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes.
• If you are serving later, top the assembled casserole with aluminum foil and pop in the freezer. When you are ready to serve, allow it to thaw in the fridge overnight and bake the following day at 350 degrees F until golden brown and cooked through, about 1 hour covered and an additional 15 minutes uncovered.

PASTA WITH GREEN BEANS AND ALMOND GREMOLATA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of well-salted water (2 heaping tablespoons kosher salt to about 7 quarts water) to a boil. Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium-low heat, toast the almonds, stirring frequently so they don't burn, about 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat. In a medium bowl, combine the almonds, celery or parsley leaves, lemon zest, garlic and a pinch of salt. Set aside and wipe out skillet.
• Add pasta to boiling water and cook until it is al dente, according to package directions. About 2 minutes before it's done, add the beans to the pasta pot. Reserve 1 cup of the pasta cooking water, and drain the pasta and beans.
• While the pasta and beans drain, make the sauce: Heat the olive oil in the large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and red-pepper flakes and cook until the garlic is golden in color, about 1 to 2 minutes. Turn heat to low and add 1/2 cup of the reserved pasta water to the skillet (be careful of splattering) and cook until it is reduced by about half, 1 to 2 minutes more. Turn heat to medium and add the pasta, green beans and butter to the skillet and toss until the butter melts. Add the cheese and an additional 1/4 cup water and toss until the cheese is emulsified and the pasta is glossy with sauce. If needed, add an additional 1/4 cup pasta water to loosen. Season with kosher salt, to taste.
• Transfer the pasta to a large bowl, top with gremolata and drizzle with more olive oil. Pass additional grated cheese at the table, if desired.

CREAMY GREEN PASTA

Steps:

• For the pasta: Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Cook the pasta as per the package instructions (10 to 12 minutes).
• For the toasted breadcrumbs: Heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat and add the extra-virgin olive oil. Once hot, add the breadcrumbs, along with a good seasoning pinch of salt and pepper, and fry, stirring frequently, until golden and crisp, about 3 minutes. Now stir in the chopped parsley and tip out into a bowl. Set aside.
• Now add the olive oil to the same pan, then add the chopped leeks and broccoli florets and sauté until just cooked through, about 4 minutes. Stir in the peas, chopped spinach and B12 flakes.
• Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the plant-based cream. Return the pan to the heat and season with a big, generous pinch of sea salt and a generous helping of black pepper. Add the zest of the lemon.
• Drain the cooked pasta and add to the pan, tossing to coat in the sauce. Sprinkle with the crispy breadcrumbs and serve.

CREAMY GREEN BEANS AND PASTA

Steps:

• If using fresh green beans, cook in a covered saucepan in a small amount of boiling water for 20 to 25 minutes or until crisp-tender. Drain.
• Meanwhile, in a large saucepan cook pasta according to package directions, adding the mushrooms, frozen green beans (if using), and green onion during the last 4 to 5 minutes of cooking. Drain pasta and vegetables in a colander. Set pasta mixture aside.
• For sauce, in the same large saucepan stir together yogurt, flour, mustard, nutmeg, and pepper. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Stir in pasta mixture, cooked fresh green beans (if using), and pancetta or ham. Heat through. To serve, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

GREEN PASTA DOUGH

Steps:

• Bring 3 quarts of water to a boil. Place a bowl filled with water and ice next to the stove top. Plunge the spinach into the boiling water and blanch for 1 minute. Remove from the boiling water with a slotted spoon and immerse in the ice water. When cooled, remove from the water, squeeze in a towel to dry and place in the bowl of a food processor. Puree until a very fine paste forms.
• Mound 3 1/2 cups of the flour in the center of a large wooden cutting board. Make a well in the middle of the flour and add the egg and spinach and the olive oil. Using a fork, beat together the eggs and oil and begin to incorporate the flour, starting with the inner rim of the well.
• As you expand the well, keep pushing the flour up from the base of the mound to retain the well shape. The dough will come together when half of the flour is incorporated.
• Start kneading the dough with both hands, using the palms of your hands. Once you have a cohesive mass, remove the dough from the board and scrape up and discard any leftover bits. Lightly re-flour the board and continue kneading for six more minutes. The dough should be elastic and a little sticky. Wrap the dough in plastic and allow to rest for 30 minutes at room temperature. Roll out to the thinnest setting on a pasta rolling machine. Cut the pasta into 1/4-inch wide ribbons, place on a sheet tray that has been liberally sprinkled with semolina flour, cover with clean towels and set aside.