Being that it’s spring season, and that Primavera translates to spring in Italian, Pasta Primavera is a perfect pasta dish for the occasion. You can make this two ways, with or without cream. If you omit the cream and cheese, it becomes a vegan dish. I had planned on making this without cream, but at a last minute decision, (based on if my kids would eat it or not), I made the creamy version. Because you are roasting the vegetables and not cooking them in a pan, the veggies have plenty of flavor to stand alone on pasta. The roasting method carmelizes the vegetables, and thus enhances the flavor. This has become my favorite way to cook veggies. Feel free to add veggies you like, and take out ones you don’t like.
I used carrots, zucchini, red & orange bell peppers, and yellow squash.
Cut all your veggies in strips
Thinly slice an onion
Place cut veggies along with the sliced onion and garlic cloves, on a baking sheet
Sprinkle veggies with fresh thyme leaves, oregano, salt and pepper
Drizzle veggies generously with extra virgin olive oil. Toss and roast in a preheated oven at 425° F.
After 10 – 12 minutes of cooking, toss the veggies once, and continue cooking for another 15 minutes, or until the carrots are nice and tender, and the veggies show some color. Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to the package directions. I used Fusilli pasta. You can also use Farfalle (bowtie) or a pasta like Cavatappi. You want to use a short pasta that pairs well with vegetables. You could stop right here, and toss the vegetables with the cooked pasta and add some reserved pasta water, season with salt and pepper, and you will have created a vegan Pasta Primavera. You could also just add cheese at this point.
I took it a step further and made a creamy version. Add 2 tablespoons of butter to a small sauce pan and melt. Then add 1½ cups of heavy cream.
Add ½ cup of grated parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Heat on low, till the sauce starts to bubble.
Add the roasted vegetables and the cream sauce to the pasta……..
and toss well.
Sprinkle with parmesan cheese, serve immediately and enjoy!
| Pasta Primavera with Roasted Vegetables | Print |
- 3 carrots, cut in strips
- 2 zucchini, cut in strips
- 3 small red and orange bell peppers, seeded and cut in strips
- 2 yellow squash, cut in strips
- 1 onion, thinly sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, peeled
- 5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- ½ cup grated parmesan cheese (creamy version)
- 1½ cup heavy cream (creamy version)
- 1 box of Fusilli or Farfalle pasta (1 lb)
- 1 cup reserved pasta water
- Thyme leaves
- Dry oregano
- Salt & pepper
- Wash and cut all your vegetables into strips. Thinly slice an onion.
- Place cut veggies along with the sliced onion and garlic cloves, on a baking sheet. Sprinkle veggies with fresh Thyme leaves, Oregano, salt and pepper.
- Drizzle veggies generously with extra virgin olive oil. Toss and roast in a preheated oven at 425° F. After 10 - 12 minutes of cooking, toss the veggies once, and continue cooking for another 15 minutes, or until the carrots are nice and tender, and the veggies show some color.
- Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to the package directions.
- For the vegan version, toss the vegetables with the cooked pasta and add some reserved pasta water, season with salt and pepper, and serve immediately.
Add 2 tablespoons of butter to a small sauce pan and melt. Then add 1½ cups of heavy cream. Add ½ cup of grated parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Heat on low, till the sauce starts to bubble. Add the roasted vegetables and the cream sauce to the pasta and toss well.
Sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese and serve immediately.
Enjoy!
Steve Fahringer says
Beautiful Dish….