Spaghetti with Asparagus, Mozzarella and Prosciutto February 23, 2008

Let’s all thank Matt real quick. “Thanks Matt!” He helped me frame this lovely shot of the pasta I made last night and it was the best picture of the bunch. The pasta was nice and flavorful without a heavy sauce. I saw Giada make it the other day and added zucchini to my dish. I served the pasta with some sourdough garlic bread and a fresh herb salad with a lemon vinaigrette.

1 pound whole wheat spaghetti
2-3 T. extra virgin olive oil
5 cloves garlic – sliced
1 pound asparagus
2 small zucchini – sliced
1/2 pound fresh mozzarella (or smoked mozzarella if you can find it)
1 bunch basil
8 slices prosciutto
Salt and Pepper to taste

Start by trimming the asparagus and boiling for 2-3 minutes. Take out of the pot and move to a bowl of ice water to stop the cooling. Let sit in the ice water for several minutes until asparagus is cool.

Start a big pot of water and bring to a boil. Toss in salt and then the spaghetti and cook al dente. While the pasta is cooking, heat oil in a pan and toss in the garlic and diced up asparagus. Saute for a few minutes with a little salt. In another pan, cook the zucchini slices until brown on each side with just a little spray of oil. Set aside.

Slice prosciutto into thin strips. Thinly slice the basil as well. Once the pasta is done, combine in a big bowl with zucchini, asparagus, garlic and oil, mozzarella, prosciutto and basil. Toss with a little salt and pepper and a little extra oil to taste. Serve warm.

Notes: I enjoyed this pasta and the lack of sauce. Everyone loves asparagus too. We talked about this too.

Servings: 6 servings with seconds