LEMON AND PARSLEY PESTO PASTA WITH GRILLED ASPARAGUS AND KALAMATA OLIVES

RECIPES

LEMON AND PARSLEY PESTO PASTA WITH GRILLED ASPARAGUS AND KALAMATA OLIVES

This pasta dish is a nutritious take on pesto pasta, loaded with vitamins A,C and K. It’s easily become my favourite pasta dish.

LEMON AND PARSLEY PESTO PASTA WITH GRILLED ASPARAGUS AND KALAMATA OLIVES

serves 2 (but makes pasta and sauce left overs)

INGREDIENTS:

1 spray of extra virgin olive oil to coat the pan

1/2 cup mushrooms, sliced

1 tbsp garlic

1 bundle asparagus or broccolini, chopped

1/2 shallot, diced

1/22 cup halved cherry tomatoes

optional:

1/2 red pepper, slicked (I used with broccolini)

1/2 cup artichoke hearts ( a nice addition to change up the recipe)

1 bag whole-grain pasta (I use Garofalo)

2-3 tbsp sliced kalamata olives

fresh grated parmesan cheese, for garnish

red pepper flakes to garnish.

Dressing

4 cups fresh parsley

1 garlic clove

juice and zest of 1 lemon

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

DIRECTIONS

In a blender, combine all the dressing ingredients and blend until well combined.

In a medium sized pot bring water to a boil.

While the water is heating up, prep your vegetables.

When the water boils, add your pasta in and cooked for the desired amount of time. I like my noodles el Dante.

While your pasta is cooking, heat a non-stick pan, add a spray of extra virgin olive oil and allow it to heat up for a minute or two.

Once your pan is hot, first add your garlic, followed by your mushrooms and saute for a few minutes.

Once the mushrooms are softening and browning slightly, add the asparagus or broccolini and shallots. Allow to cook until the asparagus or broccolini is nearly done but needs a few more minutes to soften. Roughly 3-5 minutes.

Add tomatoes and cook for a another 3-5 minutes or until the tomatoes are blistered and softening.

Lastly (if using, add red pepper, and some 1 tbsp of the sliced kalamata olives and and artichoke hearts.) Mix well and transfer the mixture to a bowl.

Once your pasta has been drained, add it to the bowl little by little. I usually don’t use all the pasta as I like to have a pretty equal amounts of veggies and pasta. Once you feel good about the proportions of the mixture, drizzle a little pesto on top and toss. You need less than you think. Do a taste test and see if you need more. Once you’ve got the desired about on pesto, add the remaining olives, dish up and top with freshly grated parmesan and sprinkle with red pepper flakes.

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