Name: Pasta Primavera with Peas and Asparagus
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 15 min
Ingredients: 200 grams pasta; 100 grams asparagus tips; 100 grams frozen peas; 100 grams sugar snap peas; juice of 1 lemon; 2 cloves garlic; 50 grams parmesan cheese (grated ); 2 tbsp butter (or olive oil ); small bunch chopped fresh parsley

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Pasta Primavera with Peas and Asparagus is a veggie packed dish tossed with a zingy lemon and garlic sauce. Ready in 15 minutes, it’s easy and so versatile with all the flavours of Spring.

Spring Vegetable Pasta

Primavera means Spring in Italian, and there are not many dishes more Spring appropriate than this Pasta Primavera!

Pasta Primavera is actually an American dish, not Italian. I believe it was first served in New York in the 1970s. There are many different variations going around but I love this all green version best.

Close up of Pasta Primavera - fusilli pasta tossed with peas, sliced asparagus and snap peas. Garnished with lemon slices, chopped parsley and grated parmesan cheese.

Asparagus and Pea Pasta

I love asparagus season! Here in the UK it is very brief, running from May to the end of June. Fresh British asparagus is pretty much the quintessential taste of spring for me. The season is short, so take advantage.

If you’re making this Pasta Primavera any other time of year, you can substitute frozen asparagus, though it is not quite the same and can be soft and mushy. I would recommend substituting the asparagus for different seasonal greens – broccoli or any type of green beans are the best choice depending on the season.

I use frozen peas which are an excellent freezer staple any time of the year and sugar snap or snow peas. When they are in season broad beans (fava beans) are an excellent extra addition or substitute for the regular peas.

Lemon Butter Sauce

The lemon butter sauce for this Pasta Primavera with Peas and Asparagus is so easy and simple, it can hardly be called a recipe. It is absolutely delicious though – the lemon and garlic pair perfectly with the asparagus and peas and really bring out the flavour. The whole dish is so light and fresh – the perfect spring pasta.

Best Pasta to Use for Primavera

Almost any pasta shape will do well for this Pasta Primavera. My personal favourite shape for this recipe is Fusilli Corti Col Buco* but penne, rigatoni and even spaghetti or linguine are all great choices.

Pasta Primavera with Peas and Asparagus in a white pasta bowl sitting on a blue cloth with a wedge or parmesan next to it.

I hope you like this recipe as much as I do! Please leave a comment or tag me on Instagram @carrieskitchen_ if you make it!

More quick & easy pasta recipes:

Pasta Primavera with Peas and Asparagus

Carrie Carvalho

Pasta Primavera with Peas and Asparagus is a veggie packed dish tossed with a zingy lemon and garlic sauce. Ready in 15 minutes, it's easy and so versatile with all the flavours of Spring.

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Prep Time 5 mins

Cook Time 10 mins

Total Time 15 mins

Course Main Course, Pasta

Cuisine American

Servings servings

Calories 645 kcal

Ingredients

200 grams pasta
100 grams asparagus tips
100 grams frozen peas
100 grams sugar snap peas
juice of 1 lemon
2 cloves garlic
50 grams parmesan cheese grated
2 tbsp butter or olive oil
small bunch chopped fresh parsley

Instructions

Remove the tough woody base of the asparagus stems – they should snap off easily. Cut the remaining parts into 3 pieces.
Slice the sugar snap peas into thirds.
Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook the pasta following packet instructions until 'al dente'. Add the peas, asparagus and sugar snaps in with the pasta for the final 2 minutes of cooking.
Meanwhile, melt the butter (or oil) over a medium-low heat in a large saucepan. Add the garlic and cook for 3-4 minutes until fragrant – be careful not to let it burn. Stir in the lemon juice.
Reserve a cup of starchy pasta water then drain the pasta, peas and asparagus.
Add about ¼ cup or 60ml of pasta water to the pan with the lemon juice, butter and garlic, then stir in the drained pasta and vegetables.
Stir in the grated parmesan and parsley plus a generous pinch of black pepper (and a pinch of salt if desired). Stir in more pasta water bit by bit until the sauce reaches your desired consistency.
Season to taste with more salt, pepper and lemon juice.
Serve garnished with extra parsley, parmesan and optional lemon wedges.

Notes

Make this dish Vegan / Dairy Free by swapping the butter for olive oil or a plant based butter and omitting the cheese.

Nutrition

Calories: 645kcalCarbohydrates: 89gProtein: 27gFat: 20gSaturated Fat: 12gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 47mgSodium: 512mgPotassium: 584mgFiber: 8gSugar: 9gVitamin A: 1849IUVitamin C: 54mgCalcium: 372mgIron: 4mg

Keyword asparagus, pasta primavera, peas

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This recipe has been linked up to CookBlogShare week 33 hosted by Melissa Traub.