Asparagus pasta with mint and ricotta pesto
Serves: 4
Prep time: 15 minsTotal time: 
Recipe photograph by Danielle Wood
Asparagus pasta with mint and ricotta pesto
Take pesto pasta to the next level by whizzing in some creamy ricotta. We’ve added asparagus tips to the pasta, but swap in any green veg you have to hand
Serves: 4
Prep time: 15 minsTotal time: 
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Nutritional information (Serving )
Calories
666Kcal
Fat
32gr
Saturates
9gr
Carbs
71gr
Sugars
4gr
Fibre
6gr
Protein
22gr
Salt
0.3gr
Abigail Spooner
Abi is our Senior Food Producer. An obsessive foodie with a sweet tooth, she is happiest when baking and is a firm believer that there is always room for dessert (preferably following a big bowl of pasta)
See more of Abigail Spooner’s recipes
Abigail Spooner
Abi is our Senior Food Producer. An obsessive foodie with a sweet tooth, she is happiest when baking and is a firm believer that there is always room for dessert (preferably following a big bowl of pasta)
See more of Abigail Spooner’s recipes
Ingredients
- 360g Taste the Difference casarecce (or pasta of choice)
- 2 x 100g packs asparagus tips, cut in half
For the pesto
- 30g toasted pine nuts
- 20g mint, leaves picked
- 15g basil, leaves picked
- 1 small garlic clove, peeled
- 30g parmesan*, finely grated
- 90ml olive oil
- 250g tub ricotta
Step by step
- For the pesto, put 20g of the toasted nuts, the herbs, garlic, parmesan and olive oil in a small food processor and pulse until mostly smooth. Add half of the ricotta and pulse again until combined. (Alternatively, use a pestle and mortar to pound together the nuts, herbs, garlic and cheese, then gradually stir in the oil. Tip the pesto into a bowl and beat in the ricotta with a spoon until combined.) Season well to taste.
-
Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil, then cook the pasta according to pack instructions, or until al dente, adding the asparagus for the final 3 minutes of cooking. Drain well in a colander, then return to the pan. Stir through the ricotta pesto until coated, then divide among serving bowls. Spoon over the remaining ricotta and scatter over the remaining pine nuts to serve. Tip*Use a vegetarian hard cheese, if required.
