Lemon & asparagus pasta

In late April, British asparagus starts to appear in the shops and we make sure we enjoy it as often as we can while it’s around. This light pasta dish is a cracking way to eat this seasonal treat and quick to prepare so give it a go – you’ll love it.

Info

Serves
4
Calories
217 per serving

Ingredients

  • 200g spaghetti or linguine
  • 150g asparagus tips
  • 100g rocket leaves
  • shredded zest of 1 lemon
  • 50ml half-fat crème fraiche
  • juice of ½ lemon
  • a few basil leaves, to serve
  • a few shavings of Parmesan cheese, to serve
  • flaked sea salt
  • freshly ground black pepper

Method

  1. Bring a large pot of water to the boil and salt it generously. Cook the spaghetti or linguine for 10-12 minutes, or until tender but still with a bit of bite to it.

  2. Meanwhile, heat a griddle pan until it’s very hot. Wash the asparagus under a cold running tap, then shake off any excess water. Griddle the asparagus for 3-4 minutes on each side until it’s softened and nicely charred, then cut it all into smaller lengths.

  3. Drain the pasta, reserving about 100ml of the cooking liquid. Tip the drained pasta back into the saucepan and add the rocket and lemon zest. Put the saucepan on a low heat, then stir the crème fraiche and lemon juice into the pasta and season with salt and pepper. Gradually add some of the reserved pasta cooking liquid if the sauce is looking too dry – you want it to coat the pasta.

  4. Fold in the cooked asparagus and serve with a few torn basil leaves and shavings of Parmesan.