Pasta With Sugar Snap Peas, Asparagus, Ricotta and Brown Butter

The browned butter is the secret to this dish. The recipe was published in the Toronto Star and credited to the San Francisco Chronicle.

• Ready In: 45 mins
• Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 8  ounces whole wheat pasta, such as rotini
• 1  tablespoon olive oil
• 1  onion, sliced thin
• 5  ounces  snap peas, cut into 1/2-inch lengths
• 1  bunch asparagus, tips only (top inch or so)
• 1⁄2  lemon, juice of
•  coarse salt, to taste
•  fresh ground pepper, to taste
• 1⁄4 cup butter
• 1  tablespoon  thinly sliced mint
• 1  tablespoon  minced lemon zest
• 6  tablespoons fresh ricotta
• 1⁄4 cup  toasted coarsely chopped hazelnuts

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta, and cook until al dente, about 12 minutes.
2. Heat oil in medium sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook, stirring, until softened and slightly brown, 7 to 10 minutes.
3. Add snap peas, asparagus and lemon juice, and cook, stir for 1 minute. Using a slotted spoon, transfer pasta to sauté pan, and add 1/2 cup of pasta cooking water to pan.
4. Continue to cook, stirring constantly, until water is almost absorbed and peas and asparagus are bright green but tender, about 4 minutes.
5. Season with salt and pepper.
6. Heat butter in small pan over high heat, swirling as butter begins to change colour. As soon as butter browns, about 4 minutes, remove from heat.
7. Stir mint and lemon zest into pasta and divide pasta among four bowls.
8. Top each bowl with 1- 1/2 tablespoons ricotta, 1/4 of the hazelnuts, and drizzle with 1 tablespoon brown butter.