4
Serves
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 8 to 10 minutes
Bulking up a pasta dish with vegetables can be as easy as tossing veggies into the boiling water along with the pasta. Just watch the timing. In most cases, add the vegetables midway through cooking. This super-simple pasta dish, highlighting asparagus, lemon, and herbs and finished with a ricotta sauce, is perfect for a light spring supper.
1/2 cup reduced-fat ricotta cheese
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, divided
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
Freshly ground pepper to taste
2 cups (8 ounces/250 grams) whole wheat penne
1 pound (450 grams) asparagus, stem ends snapped off, cut into 1 1/2-inch (4-centimeter) lengths (2 cups)
1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil for cooking the penne.
2. Stir the ricotta, 1/4 cup of the Parmesan, parsley, lemon zest, lemon juice, salt, and pepper in a small bowl until smooth.
3. Add the penne to the boiling water and cook, stirring occasionally, for 4 minutes. Add the asparagus and cook until the penne is al dente (just tender) and the asparagus is tender, 4 to 6 minutes longer. Reserve 1/3 cup of the pasta cooking water. Drain the pasta and asparagus and place in a large bowl.
4. Add 1/3 cup of the reserved pasta cooking water to the ricotta mixture, whisking until smooth. Toss the pasta with the ricotta sauce. Pass the remaining Parmesan separately. One serving is 1 1/2 cups.
Per serving: 306 calories, 15 g protein, 49 g carbohydrates, 7 g fiber, 6 g total fat, 2 g saturated fat, 482 mg sodium.
In Step 3, omit the asparagus; cook the penne for 8 to 12 minutes. While the penne is cooking, cook one 10-ounce (300-gram) package frozen spinach according to package directions. In Step 4, toss the penne with the ricotta sauce and spinach.