Tagliatelle Primavera

Winter is all about simple, comfort eating. But that doesn’t mean every meal should be a stew. Tagliatelle Primavera (literally ‘spring’, but we’ll ignore that bit) is a simple, one-pot pasta dish, perfect for the early year. Weekends especially.

In my eyes, all of the best pasta dishes can be thrown together at a moment’s notice, without too much hassle or fuss. Pasta is a rustic ingredient, which should be used in a manner befitting its nature.

You may disagree – and “posh” pasta is usually nice too – but there’s no reason to go above and beyond the call of duty with pasta. Simple ingredients and simple flavours, though carefully considered, are all that’s necessary for a comforting pasta dish.

Feel free to add whatever vegetables you like, or have in the cupboard, to your primavera. Nothing is out of bounds.In that sense, it’s very similar to a minestrone.

However, I’d avoid adding meat – even chicken – as it can have the effect of making what should be a light pasta dish, a little too heavy.

The key here is not to skimp on the lemon juice or fresh herbs. It is these ingredients that elevate the primavera from a pasta “concoction” to a cohesive dish with notes of fragrance and a refreshing tang.

Tagliatelle Primavera

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 300g tagliatelle, or similar
• 50g butter
• 1 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
• 2 cloves of garlic, mashed
• 1 leek, finely chopped
• 200g broccoli, in small florets
• 200g green beans, halved
• 100g frozen broad beans
• 100g frozen garden peas
• 1 lemon, juice and zest
• 1 handful fresh parsley, finely chopped
• 1 handful fresh basil, finely chopped

Method:

1. Start by cooking your pasta according to packet instructions in well-salted water. Once cooked, drain, rinse with cold water and set aside. Save 50ml of the starchy water.
2. Melt the butter in a large saucepan, adding a little olive oil to keep it from burning. Tip in the garlic and leek and cook on a medium heat until translucent and soft.
3. Add the broccoli and green beans and stir fry for 2 minutes over a high heat, before adding the broad beans and peas, followed by the cooked pasta and the starchy water.
4. Cook the pasta until warm – don’t let it stick. Add the lemon juice, zest, parsley and half the basil and stir through. Serve immediately with the remaining basil and a drizzle of olive oil.

Cost:By using ingredients like green beans, frozen peas and broccoli, keeping the cost of a dish like this down is child’s play.

Avoiding the addition of anything particularly expensive, you can make your own delicious tagliatelle primavera foras little as £3.