Change the Way You Cook

The Springiest Pasta with Green Peas, So Many Alliums, and All the Herbs

April 10, 2018

In late March, we made the brown butteriest cauliflower with our new favorite vegetable technique: the blanch and satué. Basically, you quarter a head of cauliflower, boil in salty water until just tender, then sauté in so much butter—plus dates and capers, lemons and parsley.

The beauty of this technique is, you can change all of that up. It doesn’t have to be cauliflower or butter, or dates or capers, or lemons or parsley. After you master the method—if you know how to boil water and sauté anything, you already have—you can start mixing and matching.

Let’s say you’re starting with green peas. These little life savers always live in my freezer for those nights when the pantry is bleak and the fridge, bleaker. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Meanwhile, caramelize yellow onions (or red, whatever is around works) in a skillet. Blanch the peas—to wake them up from the freezer—then toss them with the onions. Add some thick yogurt and just-cooked pasta, plus cheese, please, and dinner’s ready.

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As someone who always has pasta and onions in the pantry, yogurt and cheese in the fridge, I’ve made some version of this Genius Diane Kochilas-inspired meal countless times. But it was only when I was writing about blanching and sautéing that I started to wonder about all the springy possibilities, about using the peas as a trampoline, and jumping up and down on their bright, cheery color. Boing! Boing!

Spring on a plate. Photo by James Ransom
  • Instead of onions: leeks, scallions, garlic, and chives. So, more or less, every other allium. Amber, sultry caramelized onions are as autumnal as a thick-knit sweater. On the other side of winter, onions are more colorful and punchy. The garlic gets added toward the end, so it loses some of its bite—but not all of it. And the chives go in raw, along with…
  • Fresh herbs: lots of them. I opted for parsley, dill, and mint. You could do basil, tarragon, thyme, or oregano—all to taste. With the big, leafy herbs, I like to leave them whole or barely chop (or tear) them. A good rule of thumb here: The more easily the herb bruises (looking at you, basil), the less you process it.
  • Instead of tagliatelle: whole-wheat shells. Of course, this is entirely up to you. I always reach for whole-wheat pasta and, here, I like the way it grounds an otherwise tangy, bright dish. But, if you find the nutty flavor distracting, skip it. And the shells: I love the way the cups hold (even hug!) the petite peas. Penne or fusilli or any other short shape are great, too.

What’s your favorite spring pasta recipe? Give us all the deets in the comments.

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Emma was the food editor at Food52. She created the award-winning column, Big Little Recipes, and turned it into a cookbook in 2021. These days, she's a senior editor at Bon Appétit, leading digital cooking coverage. Say hello on Instagram at @emmalaperruque.

4 Comments

Terri April 11, 2018
Yaaas! Spring is in the air and this dish was the perfect accompaniment! I truly did intend to make this with peas, but my grocery had asparagus on sale, so why not?! I was tempted to throw in lots of other fresh things bc you just kind of get on a roll, but I resisted and made the recipe as is (but for the asparagus sub) and it was fantastic! The creamy yogurt sauce was delish and I can't wait to make this again!
 
Terri April 11, 2018
Yaaas! Spring is in the air and this dish was the perfect accompaniment! I truly did intend to make this with peas, but my grocery had asparagus on sale, so why not?! I was tempted to throw in lots of other fresh things bc you just kind of get on a roll, but I resisted and made the recipe as is (but for the asparagus sub) and it was fantastic! The creamy yogurt sauce was delish and I can't wait to make this again!
 
Niknud April 11, 2018
This is awesome - and hysterical because I definitely raided the baby herbs for the first time this year last night. Got some baby parsley which fortunately self seeds all over the place so I can be a little reckless with the young plants, chives and a few leaves of thyme. Did a lovely pasta with a garlic, anchovy, white wine and olive oil base. Added in some cherry tomatoes (store bought), spinach, herbs and loads of dried red pepper. Finished with parmesan and a squeeze of lemon.
The best part was seeing all the other things beginning to green up in the garden - lettuce (self seeded), chamomile, sage, strawberries. And, bonus!, I managed to keep three rosemary and 1 lemon verbena plant alive in the house over the winter. But it will still be a few weeks before they can go outside. Ok, I'll stop raving about spring and my garden now, but I am just really really happy it's spring. :)
 
Niknud April 11, 2018
This is awesome - and hysterical because I definitely raided the baby herbs for the first time this year last night. Got some baby parsley which fortunately self seeds all over the place so I can be a little reckless with the young plants, chives and a few leaves of thyme. Did a lovely pasta with a garlic, anchovy, white wine and olive oil base. Added in some cherry tomatoes (store bought), spinach, herbs and loads of dried red pepper. Finished with parmesan and a squeeze of lemon.
The best part was seeing all the other things beginning to green up in the garden - lettuce (self seeded), chamomile, sage, strawberries. And, bonus!, I managed to keep three rosemary and 1 lemon verbena plant alive in the house over the winter. But it will still be a few weeks before they can go outside. Ok, I'll stop raving about spring and my garden now, but I am just really really happy it's spring. :)