SACRAMENTO, Calif. — It's officially spring and this lemon and thyme asparagus pasta is perfect for it. It's not only a delicious springtime recipe, but it's also pretty budget-friendly.
Asparagus is a typical spring vegetable, so it's not going to be hard to find at the grocery store or farmers' market.
You can use any kind of pasta you like, but I used a green lentil penne as it helps to boost the protein in this dish.
Just three ounces of lentil pasta has 21 grams of protein. This makes a great meal for anyone looking to cut back on meat as there's no need to add in any extra protein.
This dish is simple and the vegetables can be substituted for others. Feel free to add in more vegetables or use other seasonings if you'd like, too!
Lemon and Thyme Asparagus Pasta
Serves 2-3
Ingredients
- 8 oz penne pasta (or whatever kind of pasta you like)
- Asparagus (cut into 1-inch pieces)
- 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (divided in half)
- 4 garlic cloves (minced)
- 1 lemon (for the zest and juice)
- ¼ cup water
- 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 tsp thyme
- ¼-½ tsp salt (optional)
- Ground pepper to taste
- Vegan parmesan cheese (optional and you can also use regular cheese, but so yummy!)
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to the package.
- While the pasta is cooking, get the asparagus ready. Chop the ends off the asparagus and discard. Then cut the rest into 1-inch pieces.
- Add the asparagus in a skillet over medium heat with the garlic, 2 tbsp of olive oil and 1/4 cup water. Sauté until the asparagus are bright green and tender about 3-5 minutes. You can check with a fork.
- Turn down the heat and add in the cooked pasta to the skillet along with the other 2 tbsp olive oil, nutritional yeast, thyme, lemon juice, zest of 1 lemon, salt and pepper.
- Stir everything together making sure the pasta and asparagus are coated.
- I also like to add in about 1/4 cup of vegan parmesan cheese. You can also use regular if you want. This is optional but it's also so good!
- Taste the pasta to see if you want to adjust the lemon or seasonings. Enjoy!
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