There’s something quite fancy about asparagus don’t you think? As veggies go, I see it as one of the more sophisticated. Or is that me just being vegetable judgemental? (Oh dear, sorry!)

Anyway, we’re in Asparagus season (just, I’m behind as usual;-) so it seemed fitting to showcase this delicious and easy peasy pasta dish, perfect for quick family dinners, but absolutely no scrimping on taste.

If you're familiar with my other recipes, then you'll know I avoid anything too fussy. This recipe is pretty damn simple, and flexible, made with a standard base of onions and garlic, seasonal veg, garlic, white wine and cream. Some fresh grated Parmesan or Pecorino cheese is a must to finish it off just right!

You can use whatever pasta shape you like. I chose casarecce for this recipe, and I tend to stick to particular pasta shapes for certain dishes or sauce styles. Some pasta shapes will always suit specific ingredients well, but it’s all the same in the end, of course. Therefore, use what you have or whatever you like best!

Creamy, Garlic Pasta with Asparagus and Peas

PREP/COOK TIME - 15 MINS | DIFFICULTY RATING - EASY | SERVES - 3,4 | RECIPE TYPE - LUNCH/DINNER

Ingredients

• Enough dried pasta to serve 4

• 3 cloves garlic minced

• 1 bunch of fresh asparagus, remove the woody ends where the stick naturally breaks

• a small tub of double cream or creme fraiche

• White wine for cooking

• 1 large onion

• 1/2 a cup of frozen peas

• Seasoning

• 1 tbsp grated Parmesan or Pecorino cheese

• Chopped fresh parsley

Instructions

1. Put some salted water on to boil to cook the pasta. Drain and set aside, save some of the pasta water in a cup.

2. Rinse frozen peas in a seive under running water until defrosted.

3. While the pasta is cooking finely chop the onion and soften in some rapeseed or olive oil in a pan, add the harder ends of the asparagus and turn in the heat until softened, then add the asparagus heads and the garlic, continue to cook, finally adding the peas.

4. Once the veg is almost cooked add the white wine and cook the alcohol through until reduced, turn off the heat and stir through the cream until warmed through.

5. Add the pasta to the veg and loosen with some pasta water if needed. Taste, season and top with Parmesan or Pecorino and parsley.

My notes and tips

1. Make sure to blitz the onions well. Unless you’re cool with chunks of onion that is. I like to blitz mine to within an inch of their life in this recipe so they almost disintegrate into the cream and wine.

2. You can skip the onions altogether, I think they enhance the flavour of the sauce, but they’re not a dealbreaker. If you do, then start with the asparagus, nothing else changes in the recipe process.

3. My tip for garlic (and this goes for all recipes really) is to avoid frying it. Add it to sauces to cook, but if it’s over-fried in oil at the beginning it can turn bitter and unpleasant, ruining the whole dish. Don’t fear garlic, it will cook. If you use a mincer or have great chopping skills (I do not) so you slice it very thin, it will cook easily and quickly. Having said all of that, if you don’t like fussing with fresh garlic, you can also use powdered, I always have some, it’s good stuff!

4. No need to pre-cook/heat the peas, just defrost them in a sieve under running water and throw them straight in as directed. This goes for adding peas to any pasta dish, and for sauces that cook for longer, you can just chuck them straight in frozen.

Hope you’ve enjoyed the recipe and feel inspired to give it a try.

Stay safe everyone.

Best wishes.

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