Spaghetti Primavera with Roasted Asparagus and Tomatoes, lovely colors meet incredible texture and flavor celebrating the end of winter and the season leading us to those warm sunny skies! Being Italian has its privileges and this dish is one of them!
Song of the day: “Break My Stride” by Matthew Wilder.
Spaghetti Primavera with Roasted Asparagus and Tomatoes, a celebration of our culture in a most delicious and visually appealing way. Take a wonderfully cooked al dente pasta and toss it with sauteed asparagus and roasted multi-colored tomatoes and a little Italian love and we have a meal that is the epitome of simple yet elegant Italian cuisine combined with what I can only describe as pure deliciousness!
Things Have Changed…………
When I was young, Winter was a favorite season as I loved going skiing. I remember watching and waiting for the snow to fall and even going to the front yard and piling the snow up to make a hill, finally strapping on some wood skis and going down that hill over and over again.
Cherishable memories, however as I get more mature my body has given me many indications that the cold plus the snow and all that goes along with it (aka snow shoveling) is not a good fit for me and warm hot weather and Mediterranean life is where I need to be.
It’s always a good time for pasta!
With that being said, good pasta is always welcome to bring in the season of spring and why not one with some wonderful veggies and of course pasta. Hey, I’m Italian, what can I say, I love my pasta! Without further ado, here is our take on an Italian classic: Spaghetti Primavera with Roasted Asparagus and Tomatoes!
Drop what you are doing, get into the kitchen and let’s make this wonderful pasta dish together, I’m hungry.
Let’s talk ingredients for our Spaghetti Primavera with Roasted Asparagus and Tomatoes……….
One thing you may know about us at Sugarlovespices is that we use great ingredients whether it be vegetables like these asparagus and cherry tomato medley, or wonderful cheeses, herbs, and pasta, hence why we love going to The Italian Centre Shop. A local Italian grocery market that is always plentiful in beautiful ingredients and product fused with an ambiance or warmth and Italian Tradition.
I wanted to talk a bit about pasta. Not all kinds of pasta are alike, if you really look at them you will see a difference in color and texture. I love this brand Rummo. It has this wonderful rough texture to it, similar to sandpaper. You may be thinking yuk, sandpaper, however, that is just an analogy.
The roughness in the texture provides many little places for the sauce and flavors of vegetables like these beautifully cooked asparagus and tomatoes to sit, forming consequently what I call a ride on the flavor train express!
Time To Get Cooking…………….
Asparagus is in full season now and I absolutely love the thin smaller ones. They are so tender and packed with flavor. Nicoletta did a great job trimming and cleaning them.
You could just place them on a baking sheet and roast them or even do them on the BBQ, however, we chose to blanch them for a bit, then baking them on a baking sheet with the tomatoes, and cipolline onions all nice and dressed in true Italian fashion with garlic, e.v.o. oil, and of course, some peperoncino, salt, and pepper.
Look at how beautiful the vegetables look. We have wonderful caramelization of those natural veggie sugars, some char, and the aroma of the sweet onions is making me so so hungry. Conclusion, let’s get this dish finished so we can eat!
A Few More Things To Do……………
Now that the vegetables are nice and roasted we have to get that asparagus cut up. I like to keep the tips whole and then cut up the stem into small pieces, hence giving the dish some visual appeal, not to mention that wonderful tender texture of the tips.
We can’t forget about the spaghetti. It does not take that long to cook, and I suggest looking at the package for optimum cooking time. I like my pasta al dente. This texture provides that nice but subtle bite in the pasta consequently preserving the wonderful flavor of the pasta.
Yes, pasta has a flavor profile, the sauce is an equal partner in this ensemble!
Why cook pasta al dente?……………….
Well, two things. As I said, it firstly enhances the true nature of pasta through flavor, and secondly, it makes it so much easier to digest and feel so good after eating a plate. Overcooked pasta leaves you feeling heavy in the stomach, not an enjoyable experience.
I personally never feel that with properly cooked pasta, on the contrary, I feel light and healthy, hence the wonderful smile on my face and that look of satisfaction after eating this Spaghetti Primavera with Roasted Asparagus and Tomatoes
Spaghetti Is Done, Time for a tossing………
All we need to do now is to get all those lovely vegetables into a pan with some olive oil and take the spaghetti from the boiling water straight into the pan with the vegetables.
You may be asking will that not be a soggy city with that water going into the pan, absolutely not. What happens is it thickens with all the lovely juices of the vegetables and olive oil creating a light sauce.
This happens because the water contains some nice starch from the pasta, hence the thickening process.
Some Finishing Touches to this Spaghetti Primavera with Roasted Asparagus and Tomatoes…………
Food, in my opinion, is a thing of beauty, so why not present it that way. They say we eat with our eyes first and I think we have done a wonderful job on this Spaghetti Primavera with Roasted Asparagus and Tomatoes, topping it with some grated ricotta salata and fresh Italian parsley!
Time To Give This Dish a try……….
Mmmmmmmmm the pasta has that nice nutty bite. There is this wonderful veggie sauce leading us into those morsels of sweet caramelized cipolline and tomato goodness. The asparagus so tender with some nice char adding a bit of sweet smoke, however, those tips are the bomb delivering so much flavor and an appealing texture to the tongue.
This Spaghetti Primavera with Roasted Asparagus and Tomatoes has everything you would want in a meal. Balance of textures and flavors, color, and even better so so healthy for you.
Get your Italian on tonight and join us in the kitchen to make a visually stunning and so alluring pasta dish we call Spaghetti Primavera with Roasted Asparagus and Tomatoes!
Buon Appetito!
Song of the day: “Break My Stride” by Matthew Wilder.
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Spaghetti Primavera with Roasted Asparagus and Tomatoes, a celebration of our culture in a most delicious and visually appealing way. Take a wonderfully cooked al dente pasta and toss it with roasted asparagus, multi-colored tomatoes, and a little Italian love and we have a meal that is the epitome of simple yet elegant Italian cuisine combined with what I can only describe as pure deliciousness!
Ingredients
Pasta:
- 300 g spaghetti pasta
Vegetables:
- 1 bundle Asparagus washed and cleaned
- 2 cups multi-colored cherry tomatoes
- 1 clove garlic
- 4 cipolline onions
- 2–3 Tbsp E.V.O. oil
- 2 sage leaves
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- Crushed sea salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
Garnish:
- 2 Tbsp fresh chopped Italian parsley
- 1 handful pistachio crushed
- a pinch of peperoncino
- 40 g grated ricotta salata
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F.
Vegetables:
- Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil.
- Take asparagus, shave the fibrous part off the surface of the stems and cut off about 2 inches from the bottom.
- Toss asparagus into the pot of boiling water and blanch for 5 minutes, drain, and set on a large baking sheet.
- Cut tomatoes in half, also cut cipolline into quarters. Take garlic, peel and cut in half. Place all on the sheet with the asparagus and dress with olive oil, salt, pepper, oregano, sage. Cook for 15 minutes turning the asparagus halfway through.
Pasta:
- Get a pot of salted water on boil and place spaghetti in and cook according to the package.
Tossing:
- Take the asparagus and cut tips off and cut the stem into about 2 cm lengths. Toss into a pan and add in roasted tomatoes and onion. Make sure to get all those lovely roasting juices into the pan. Drizzle in some olive oil.
- Gently take spaghetti with tongs from the pot and place directly into the pan with the veggies. It does not matter that some of the pasta water goes in. You need that to create the moisture and sauce for the pasta.
- Toss well and sprinkle half the parsley in.
Garnish:
- Place pasta on a plate. Sprinkle with crushed pistachio, grated ricotta salata, chopped parsley, a pinch of peperoncino (optional), and finish with a nice drizzle of olive oil.
- Ready to serve.
Buon Appetito!
Notes
- You can grill the asparagus, onions and tomatoes on the BBQ if you want.
2 Comments
This definitely looks like the perfect summer pasta dish!
What a delicious way to use seasonal veggies, and I love that you roasted them. This pasta dish looks amazing. Thanks for sharing!
★★★★★