Happy, happy Friday y’all!! It’s been a long, but productive week and I am definitely ready for the weekend and some down time. Tomorrow I’m hoping to be at home all.day.long. I need to do some serious deep cleaning and, of course, catch up on my DVR from the week. Helloooo…going to bed at 9 o’clock every night this week has cut into my tv-watching time. And made me feel like I’m getting old, but whatevs.
I’ve mentioned before that I have had trouble deciding how I feel about goat cheese. But, after this dish, the dilemma is over. Mixing the goat cheese with the lemon juice and zest reduces the tanginess just a bit, and goes great with the pasta and asparagus. I would say, aside from various tacos, this is now my favorite meatless meal!!
I hope you all have a fantastic weekend! The weather in Texas has been way above abnormally warm, and I feel for all you up North with the sub-artic temps. But, what better excuse to turn on the oven, eh?
Pasta with Lemon, Asparagus, and Goat Cheese
As seen on Elly Says Opa!, originally from Bon Apetit
Ingredients
- 1 lb short pasta (I used whole wheat penne)
- 1 lb asparagus spears, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
- 3 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 Tbsp finely grated lemon zest
- Juice of 1 lemon (at least 2 Tbsp)
- 6 oz goat cheese
- 3 Tbsp chopped fresh basil
Preparation
- Cook your pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water about 4 minutes less than the package instructions suggest for tender pasta. Add the asparagus and cook another 2-3 minutes.
- Drain the pasta and asparagus together, reserving one cup of pasta water.
- Meanwhile, combine the olive oil, lemon juice and zest in a large bowl. Add the goat cheese, and stir to combine.
- Pour the hot pasta and asparagus into the bowl and stir. Slowly add some of the pasta water, just enough to form a sauce (you will probably only use about half a cup, if that).
- Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and then stir in the chopped basil. Serve immediately.
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