Pasta primavera gets a makeover featuring fresh zucchini noodles a bright herby sauce and loads of fresh spring vegetables.
What comes to mind when you think of pasta primavera? Chances are you think of a rather bland pasta dish with a light cream sauce and a scattering of vegetables thrown in.
Pasta primavera, invented famously by Le Cirque restaurant back in the heyday of nouvelle cuisine has since largely fallen out of favor. Although “primavera” means spring too many versions of the dish contained very few ingredients that had anything to do with spring with any vegetables most often overcooked into soggy submission. So I thought it was high time the classic dish got a bit of a makeover.
My version of spring pasta is lightened up by using zucchini noodles instead of traditional noodles and packed with loads of springtime favorites like asparagus, snap peas and broccolini. The whole dish is a veritable cornucopia of green and the kind of food that makes you feel good after you’ve polished off your plate, not heavy and weighed down. Not to mention that it’s an easy and delicious way to get in your daily servings of vegetables.
In a matter of moments you can whizz together the sauce and quickly cook the vegetables. If you have a spiralizer or a julienne peeler you can also easily make your own zucchini noodles or just buy them pre-made at your grocery store.
I’ve also swapped out the original cream sauce for a fresh pesto inspired mix of dill, parsley and pistachios with a hint of lemon zest. The bright tasting sauce is a natural complement to the lightly blanched vegetables and the perfect dish to make this time of year.
It’s a quick and simple “pasta” that captures the essence of springtime cooking: fresh and filled with green.
Serves 4
Sylvie Shirazi
Pasta primavera gets a makeover featuring fresh zucchini noodles a bright herby sauce and loads of fresh spring vegetables.
20 minPrep Time
5 minCook Time
25 minTotal Time
Save Recipe5 based on 2 review(s)
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons/ 18g pistachios
- ¼ cup dill, stems removed
- ¼ cup flat leaf parsley, stems removed
- Lemon zest from ½ a lemon
- 1 small clove of garlic
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 3 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 small bunch broccolini, cut into 2-inch pieces
- ½ a bunch of asparagus, cut into 2-inch pieces
- 1 cup snap peas, string removed and cut in half if large
- 3-4 zucchini, made into noodles with a spiralizer or julienne peeler
Instructions
- In a small food processor, pulse pistachios until finely chopped, add dill, parsley, lemon zest, garlic and salt; pulse again until finely chopped. With motor running, add in olive oil until smooth.
- Bring large pot of salted water to a boil.
- Add broccolini, asparagus and snap peas to boiling water and blanch for 2-3 minutes or until tender but firm. Transfer to an ice bath to cool, drain and gently pat dry.
- Toss zucchini noodles with pistachio dill pesto, gently stir in blanched vegetables to coat.
- Serve at room temperature.
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