Spring is Green

Wine: L'automne Pinot Noir 2005

We went to the Hollywood Farmer's Market and bought lots of green spring Vegitables: Fresh Fava, Fresh Peas, Fresh Asparagus, Baby Artichokes.

For a first course we made Vignole from the Italian Country Cookbook, by the owners of the River Cafe in London. Vignole is a kind of stew of peas, fava's and Artichokes. It is stewed with a thick slice of Prosciutto (we purchased it at The Cheese Store of Silverlake). The stew is flavored with Mint, olive oil, butter and mint. We served with the Vignole mini Cheese Rolls from The Bread Bar. These are our favorite rolls!

The dish is easy to make, once the prep is complete. The prep in this case is the double peeling of the fava beans, the shelling of the peas and the blanching and cutting up of the artichokes. The dish has a great taste with the many green vegetables blending together. We had lots of left overs and plan to make a risotto next week with the vignole as the base.

For the second course we made Asparagus Pasta. We really like this spring pasta. It is very simple and rich.

Asparagus Pasta
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1. Break Asparagus stalks where they naturally break towards the stem end
2. Wash and shave the stalks lightly if you wish
3. Cook the Asparagus for about 3 minutes in boiling water till just tender
4. Meanwhile brown butter in a small pan till bubbling and brown
5. Cook Pasta, we use a cork-screw pasta
6. Rinse Asparagus in cool water to stop cooking, cut in 1 1/2 inch pieces
7. Combine Asparagus, Brown Butter and Pasta in dish mix well
8. Top with grated Parmesan Cheese


A great spring dinner with lots of leftovers!