Spring Pea + Lobster Mushroom Pasta
Late spring (May - mid-June) is a wonderful time for eating. A harvest of the first spring ingredients bring much needed freshness after a long winter of recycled flavors. Micro nutrients in a myriad of greens, onion varieties, and herbs awaken our palettes and give us bold flavor. Mother Earth designed spring season to help us shed fat reserves we maintain in the winter. It’s why so many spring products include detoxifying, diuretic, natural laxative, and nutrient-dense components.
This pasta is a celebration of the return of spring flavors. I created it specifically to celebrate my first Community Supported Agriculture box, which came overflowing with zesty seasonal flavors. To anchor all the sharp onion and garlic mustard tastes, I opted for a creamy pasta. It’s a perfect option for a rainy spring day when you want to use several spring ingredients at once. It’s also forgiving, so if you don’t have one of the vegetables in the dish, skip it, or sub something else.
ingredients
1 package of your favorite pasta (I use fettuccelle)
2 tbsp good butter
1 large green onion, sliced in thin rounds
5 small carrots, peeled and sliced in rounds
1 tsp each: oregano, black pepper, pink salt
1 cup half n' half, separated
1 package (about 2 cups) your favorite mushrooms (I use dehydrated lobster mushrooms because I love their brilliant color and significant “meatiness”)
1 cup peas
6 oz shaved parmesan cheese
For Serving:
Garlic mustard greens, ripped in small pieces (or any other light, fresh herb)
instructions
Cook your pasta according to pasta, drain, rinse, set aside
Heat butter in a large pot, like a dutch oven
Once hot, add green onion and sauté over medium-heat for a few minutes
Once the onion begins to sweat and soften, add carrots, spices, and salt, simmer for 5 minutes
Add 1/2 cup cream, simmer another 5 minutes
Add mushrooms, combine in sauce, and simmer another 5 minutes
Add peas and remaining 1/2 cup cream, combine and simmer a final 5 minutes
Add parmesan, combine until melted
Add pasta, combine all ingredients and serve immediately
Serves 4-6
Recipe Key
Spring, Summer
Main Dishes