asparagus pasta (vegetarian)

alteRecipes.com recipe
derived from Heidi Swanson's
Super Natural Cooking
(Celestial Arts, 2007, pages 108-109)

1. spinach fettucine 4 ounces
  egg fettucine 4 ounces
2. asparagus 1 big bunch,
snap-trimmed
3. pine nuts ¼ cup toasted
  spinach 3 handfuls
mature spinach
  parsley large bunch
  garlic 6 cloves
  Parmesan cheese ½ cup
  olive oil 2 Tablespoons
  lemon juice juice of half a lemon
  salt to taste
4. pine nuts another ¼ cup toasted

1. Put a large pot of water on the stove and bring it up to a boil. When the pasta water is boiling, drop all the pasta in and agitate it (I use a long fork or a long pancake turner) so it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pot.

2. Microwave the trimmed asparagus spears till they are barely tender (about 1 ½ minutes in my microwave). Cut off the asparagus tips and put them aside. Cut the remaining asparagus spears in quarters crosswise.

3. Put the cut asparagus spears plus all the other sauce ingredients into your food processor and process them until they reach the consistency you prefer.

4. Dress the asparagus with the sauce and garnish it with the asparagus tips, the other pine nuts, and more cheese if you want.