Dinner Tonight: Pasta with Corn, Tomato, and Asparagus
This dish was inspired by two things: a trip to a restaurant called Finch's in Bloomington, Indiana, and a later trip to the farmer's market. At the restaurant, they served me a rich pasta with corn, crisp snap peas, and tomato. The best part about it was the soupy, buttery broth underneath everything. Usually when I cook pasta I aim for a consistency between dry and soupy, but this really hit the spot.
So at home, armed with some delicious Indiana corn, cherry tomatoes, and asparagus, I set out loosely following a recipe for orecchiette with broccoli rabe. The part I liked was the chicken broth that the vegetables were poached in; they weren't sauteed in oil so were kept delicate, and whatever the vegetables didn't soak up ended up in the bottom of the bowl as a butter and Parmesan-infused broth.
It's not a bad technique for creating any impromptu pasta with a farmer's market haul.
Pasta with Corn, Tomato, and Asparagus
-serves 4-6-
Ingredients
1 pound shaped pasta
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
small pinch of red pepper flakes
2 ears corn, kernels sliced off
15-20 cherry tomatoes (about 12 ounces)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups grated Parmesan
salt and pepper
Procedure
1. Bring a large pot of salty water to boil and cook the pasta until al dente.
2. In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook until the garlic is soft and fragrant, 1-2 minutes. Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil.
3. Add the vegetables to the broth and cook until tender but still al dente (in the case of the asparagus). Stir in the butter and 3/4 of the Parmesan and cook, uncovered, until the sauce thickens slightly, about 2 minutes.
4. Add the drained pasta, season with salt and plenty of black pepper, and toss to coat in the sauce. Serve with the remaining Parmesan.
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6 Comments:
I like a similar dish: Scott Conant's Pasta with Spicy Corn and Asparagus.
msecondo at 5:15PM on 07/24/09
I made a similar dish last night for dinner (+lunch today). Instead of asparagus, I used peas...
Cassaendra at 5:51PM on 07/24/09
i think you forgot a crucial ingredient in the list: asparagus.
jimmy0x52 at 6:06PM on 07/24/09
Oh my. I made it tonight. Broccoli instead of asparagus...fresh mozzarella instead of parmesan...only because I did not have the other stuff...So so so good. Light and tasty. Will make it often. I must leave computer and go heat up leftovers.
kpope at 10:49PM on 07/25/09
How many pounds of asparagus did you use? And yes, it's missing from the ingredient list!
kriswithmany at 1:18PM on 07/29/09
The sauce was good, BUT I think I failed @ this dish. When I stirred in the cheese, it was all gummy and stringy looking and formed chunks of cheese balls! Is it supposed to be like this?
I believe my error was that I stirred in the cheese way too long. I stirred it over 2 minutes because I wasn’t seeing the thickness like the direction said. I thought the thickness was going to be like cornstarch thick or a heavy thick creamy looking effect. Boy was I wrong!
If you are going to try this dish, I recommend NOT to stir it over 2minutes (maybe 3min tops). Also, I used my own veggies so I put in carrots (sliced) yellow squash (sliced) corn, and green peas. Good luck!
Yum776 at 6:31PM on 08/18/09