Cooking in season

We've been a little off-schedule this past week. Not as much cooking or exercising as usual due to being out of town for a few days. Because of the water main break and boil water order that affected 2 million people in MA, including everyone in Boston, Little H and I spent part of the week at my parents' house. A lot of fun was had by all! The little guy got to spend time with his Nonnie and Papa, which meant my hands were free for a change... not that I don't love holding that adorable boy :)

Since getting back home on Wednesday, I've made it to the gym once and cooked once. A supermarket trip is much needed. We're indebted to Don Otto's Market this week. We're big fans of their fresh, local meats and also their prepared foods, which we enjoyed twice over the last 3 days.

But I was itching to get back in the kitchen and found a recipe in a new cookbook I've been wanting to try. A simple pasta with lemon and asparagus. Fresh and light for spring. It's from the cookbook In Season: cooking with fruits and vegetables by Sarah Raven. I've always been interested in eating and cooking with fruits & veggies that are seasonal and local, and ultimately at their freshest and most delicious. I browsed a handful of cookbooks with this particular focus and liked the layout and content of this one the best. (And the full-page photos are beautiful to look at... another plus). It groups 2 months together in chronological order, highlighting fruits & veggies in season during those months and detailing recipes for dishes that use those seasonal foods. The recipes use simple ingredients, a prerequisite for me. A few of the other cookbooks were too "gourmet", using ingredients I've never heard of and preparations too involved. That type of cooking is not for me. So far, I've tried 3 recipes from this cookbook:

• Rhubarb tart - This was my first time making a pastry crust. I had to roll it out quite a few times before I was able to pick it up in one piece and place it in the pan (it kept getting holes or rips in it). I still never got the crust perfect, but overall the tart turned out really good. It had a custard-type filling mixed with the rhubarb that gave it a creamy texture with just the right amount of sweetness. The only other time I've ever had rhubarb is in strawberry rhubarb pies my aunt would make using fresh rhubarb from her garden. I was much younger then and didn't have a real appreciation at that time for the fact that she grew it, picked it and cooked it at it's freshest. I just remember how good it was!
  
• Cauliflower soup - I wasn't too crazy about this one. The flavor was a little dull, and the texture a bit too grainy (but I think that was my fault because I didn't purée it enough).
• Asparagus pasta with lemon - I made this one just last night and loved it. Tis the season for asparagus, and this dish was perfect for spring, light and fresh. The lemon juice and lemon zest gave it a refreshing flavor, not overwhelming with just a touch of citrus. The mixture of butter and cream helped coat the pasta with the flavors of the lemon along with the fresh parsley and grated Parmesan. Seasoned with salt and pepper and served with some fresh warm bread, this was a perfect spring dish.
  

The local farmers market doesn't open here until May 18th (in Copley Square). So, in full disclosure, the rhubarb, cauliflower and asparagus I used were not local, but they were all I could find in the stores. But since I was eager to try the recipes, I just used what they had (I think the cauliflower and asparagus were from CA and the rhubarb was from MI... not exactly local). In a couple weeks I'll be able to purchase fresh fruits & veggies directly from the local farmers, and that's when the true seasonal cooking begins. That's part of life in New England!

If you can find some good, fresh asparagus now, I'd encourage you to try this dish. I had it as my main meal, but it would make a great side dish as well.
Asparagus pasta with lemon (from In Season: cooking with vegetables and fruits by Sarah Raven) ~ Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 1/2 pound asparagus
• 12 ounces penne or egg tagliatelle (I used penne this time)
• Salt & pepper
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped flat-leaf parsley, to serve
• Freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

• Break off the tough or bendy bottom ends of the asparagus. If the stems are quite thick, pare off a thin layer of stalk at the stem end with a potato peeler. Cut the stalks at an angle, leaving the tips whole. Steam or boil the asparagus for 7 to 8 minutes, until tender but still crisp. Rinse in cold water and drain.
• Cook the past in a pot of salted boiling water until al dente.
• While you're cooking the pasta, warm the butter and cream in a pan over low heat and simmer for a couple of minutes. Add the cooked asparagus and lemon zest and juice. Take off the heat and leave for 5 minutes for the flavors to blend.
• When the pasta is cooked, drain all but a tablespoon of the cooking liquid, add the olive oil, and combine with the asparagus and lemon sauce.
• Stir, season with salt & pepper to taste, and serve with plenty of chopped flat-leaf parsley scattered on top and a bowl of grated Parmesan on the side

Enjoy!