One of my favorite lunch spots has to be my friend Reggie’s house.  We cook, we chat and, of course, drink wine!  Our favorite thing to cook (for now)? Pasta Primavera.  I make the noodles, she makes the killer sauce and we share wine glass-filling duty.  Today’s selection was a La Crema chardonnay– a fair-and-just wine that makes the perfect pairing with this dish. Cheers!  I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Homemade Pasta Noodles(single batch – feeds 3-4)

1 1/2 cups flour (I like organic, unbleached flour)
pinch of sea salt
2 egg yolks plus one egg
¼ cup water (filtered if your water quality is poor)

Mix together flour and salt. Drop in egg yolks and mix until well combined. Add in water, and allowing mixture to blend until a stiff dough forms.

Using your pasta roller or rolling pin, roll dough to desired thickness.  If using a manual pasta roller, start on the thickest setting, gradually working your way down through the thinner settings, one at a time, until the desired dough thickness is achieved.  Cut pasta by hand using a pizza cutter or the pasta cutter attachment on your pasta roller (a fun task for the little ones to participate in too).  Set pasta aside on a lightly floured surface while you prepare the Primavera.

Pasta Primavera Sauce

1 tablespoon minced garlic
¼ cup diced onion
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 ½ cups freshly cut asparagus
1 cup freshly green beans
8 oz sliced mushroom
1 ½ cup sliced zucchini
8 oz can of stewed, diced tomatoes
2 cups half and half
1 cup frozen peas
salt to taste

In a large pan on medium, heat olive oil and add garlic and onion.  Cook until onions are tender-crisp.  Add mushrooms and cook for 3-5 minutes.  Add in stewed, diced tomatoes and half and half and cook another 5 minutes.  Stir in frozen peas and salt to taste. Reduce heat to low.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water with a pinch of salt to a boil.  Once boiling, add in asparagus, green beans and zucchini.  Cook for around 3 minutes.  Add uncooked pasta to the water and cook 1-2 minutes or until pasta is al dente.

Drain the vegetable/pasta mixture in a colander then add back into the mushroom/sauce mixture.  Toss to coat pasta.

Serve with a little freshly grated parmesan or Romano cheese.

A special thanks to Reg for hosting another lovely afternoon!

If you want to check out Reggie in all of her own food and wine adventures, catch her at www.localhappeningsmagazine.com.

Happy Easter to everyone from cookplantmeditate.com!

Eat Well!

~Trish