Spring recipes from Italy: pasta with asparagus

While it snowed yesterday in northern Italy, to welcome spring and Easter on April 1st, generally speaking signs that the warmer season is on its way are apparent.
Which means some wonderful Italian dishes are just around the corner.
We’ve gone from red chicory for winter and are now in the perfect season for tasty vegetables like artichokes, asparagus and pesto dishes.

While the famous white asparagus of Trentino-Alto Adige might be out of reach for most of us, Italy has plenty of fresh asparagus on offer which generally makes a fantastic dish of risotto.

Asparagus also goes nicely with pasta, as in this Italian recipe of asparagus with penne.
Make sure that the penne are ‘rigate’ – that is with the lines and not smooth as they give more texture and hold sauce better.
Ingredients: 300 g of penne, 350 g of asparagus, 150 g of cream, 80 g of sliced ham, 20 g of grated parmesan cheese, breadcrumbs, salt, pepper, butter and nutmeg.
Method: clean and trim the asparagus and blance them slightly in salty water.

Drain them when they’re not overcooked and chop off the tips while putting the rest in a food processor.

To the mixture, add the cream, nutmeg, and a little salt and pepper.
Cook the pasta and in the meantime chop the ham and add it to the mixture.
When the pasta is ready, drain and dress with the sauce and asparagus tips and then turn into an oven dish.
Cover with the grated parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs, with some butter and bake in a 200°C oven for about 15 minutes.