All the ancient flavors of Spring packed in one bowl with enough nutrients to leave you feeling like the goddess you are.
SPECIAL EQIPMENT:
Strainer with a long handle (I use these ones)
12" tweezers
Blender with an individual cup attachment or a food processor (I like this one)
INGREDIENTS:
1/4 c pumpkin seeds, shells removed
62 g (about 6 -8 cups) arugula
10 leaves of lemon balm or zest of 1 lemon
6 sprigs of oregano, leaves removed
20 leaves of mint
1/4 (about 31 g) avocado
3 cloves garlic
1/2 jalapeno pepper, seeds removed
4 green onions (about 20 g)
juice from 1/4 orange
1 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
(optional) 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp salt (or to taste)
1/4 tsp pepper (or to taste)
225 g (8 oz) conchiglie pasta
1/4 to 1/3 c reserved pasta water
2 tbsp Bella Rosa grated parmesan
1 c frozen peas
Add pumpkin seeds to a medium sauté pan and heat over medium heat, tossing occasionally until toasted and fragrant. Meanwhile, bring a covered pot of water to boil. Get a bowl filled with very cold water and ice cubes and set aside. While water is boiling, add lemon balm, oregano, mint, avocado, garlic, jalapeño, green onions, white balsamic, oil, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes to the blender. Set aside. When pumpkin seeds are fragrant, add to blender cup.
When water is boiling, add the arugula and cook for exactly 30 seconds. Using tweezers and a strainer, scoop the arugula out of the boiling water and immediately place in the bowl of ice water to stop it from cooking further.
Salt the boiling water and add the pasta - stir immediately to keep from sticking. Drop the heat to medium to maintain a gentle boil. Cook pasta uncovered for 10 minutes. While pasta is cooking, reserve about 1/3 c of water and pour about half of it in the blender.
Blend the ingredients, adding water as needed to adjust for a smooth consistency. Stir in the grated parmesan cheese. Add sauce to the sauté pan that originally had the pumpkin seeds. When pasta is done, use a strainer to scoop the pasta from the water into the sauce. Pour the peas into the strainer and sit it in the water, moving gently back and forth to get the warm water around the peas to cook for about 1 minute. Add peas to the pasta and sauce - mix to combine.
Prep time = 5 min | Cook time = about 15 minutes | Serves 4
Pro tips:
Essentially what we've made here for the sauce is an oregano and arugula pesto. You can replace the pasta water with more olive oil and use it as you would any other pesto.
If you don't have a strainer with a long handle, here are your alternatives:
Use tongs to fish the arugula out of the water
Use a slated spoon to get the pasta and the peas out.
If you're not into spice, you can easily leave the jalapeño out and it will still taste amazing. I love this dish both ways.
If you're looking for ways to add meat to this here are some suggestions:
shredded rotisserie chicken
crisp up some pancetta, lardons, or prosciutto.
A regular orange would work in lieu of a cara cara orange. You can also substitute it for the juice of one whole clementine.
You could replace the cheese with a vegan alternative (perhaps nutritional yeast).
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