Easy Pasta Primavera Recipe

Pasta primavera is a delicious entrée loaded with fresh seasonal vegetables that are tossed with noodles and finished off with fresh herbs and cheese.

I’m not sure there is a better recipe to get your family to eat vegetables then this. It’s incredibly simple to make for a quick weeknight meal and elegant enough to serve up to guests if you desire.

Ingredients for this recipe:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ½ peeled thinly sliced red onions
• 2 peeled thinly sliced carrots
• 6 thinly sliced cremini mushrooms
• 2 finely minced cloves of garlic
• 8-10 thinly sliced stalks of asparagus
• 1 thinly sliced green zucchini
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes sliced in half
• ½ cup fava beans, lima beans or peas
• ¼ cup sliced kalamata olives
• 1 pound linguine, angel hair, penne or farfalle pasta
• 1 ½ cups pasta water
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• sea salt and pepper to taste

Serves 8

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Procedures:

1. Add the olive oil to a large frying pan over medium heat and cook the red onions until they are lightly browned and tender, about 6-8 minutes.
2. Next, add in the carrots and mushrooms and cook for a further 4-5 minutes.
3. Scoot the vegetables to one side of the pan and on the other side cook the garlic for 1 to 2 minutes or until lightly browned.
4. Stir in the asparagus, zucchini, tomatoes and beans and cook for 2 to 3 minutes.
5. Finish by mixing in the olives, parsley, salt and pepper.
6. When you add in the remaining vegetables to the pasta, cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water according to the recommended times on the package and add it to the pan.
7. Add the pasta to the pan with cooked vegetables along with pasta water and toss until mixed together.
8. Serve with optional garnishes: toasted pine nuts, chopped basil, grated parmesan cheese.

CHEF NOTES:

• How to Reheat: Add your desired amount of pasta to a frying pan with a ½ cup of warm water and cook the pasta over low heat while moving the past around with a spoon until hot.

• Make Ahead: It is always best to make and serve this pasta immediately.

• How to Store: Keep covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

• Be sure to season the hot boiling water for the pasta with salt. A rule of thumb is that it should taste like the ocean.

• You can substitute out the hot starchy pasta water with hot vegetable stock or chicken stock.

• They say once you smell garlic while cooking, it’s done.