Make Ahead
by: EmilyC
April10,2018
4.5
4 Ratings
- Serves 4 to 6
Jump to Recipe
Author Notes
If you've never had aillade, the simple, sublime sauce of pounded nuts and garlic from southern France, then you're in for a treat when making this pasta. And if you've had aillade, then you already know you're in for a treat. Aside from the aillade, this pasta is so good because the pasta and asparagus are in perfect balance (no skimping on the vegetables here!) and the whole dish is zippy, bright, and bold in flavor. It can be served warm, at room temperature, or cold, making it perfect for toting to work or serving at spring picnics or potlucks. —EmilyC
- Test Kitchen-Approved
What You'll Need
Ingredients
- For the pasta:
- 1 poundCasarecce pasta (fusilli also works well)
- 1 tablespoonolive oil
- 1 tablespoonbutter
- 3/4 cupthinly sliced spring onion (white parts only), or use 1 large shallot
- 2 bunches asparagus (about 2 pounds), trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
- 3/4 teaspoonPiment d’Espelette, or to taste (other mild chile flakes can be substituted)
- Kosher salt, to taste
- 3 to 4 tablespoonsfreshly squeezed lemon juice, from 2 small lemons
- 1 cupFrench or other mild-tasting feta, crumbled
- 1/2 cupcoarsely chopped tarragon
- 1/2 cupcoarsely chopped parsley
- For pistachio aillade:
- 1/2 cupunsalted shelled pistachios
- 2 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
- Kosher salt, to taste
- Grated zest of 1 lemon
- 1/2 cupextra-virgin olive oil
Directions
- To make the aillade, unshell the pistachios and cook them over medium heat just long enough to warm through, 2 to 3 minutes. With a mortar and pestle (or sharp knife or mini food processor), pound the garlic with 1/2 teaspoon salt until a paste forms. Add the pistachios and pound into small, irregularly shaped pieces. Stir in the lemon zest and olive oil. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
- Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook until al dente.
- Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat olive oil and butter over medium heat. Add spring onion, asparagus pieces, piment d’espelette, and a few large pinches of kosher salt, stirring to evenly coat in the fat. Saute until crisp-tender, stirring often, about 4 to 6 minutes. Add lemon juice, starting with less and adding more, to taste. Adjust salt to taste.
- When pasta is done, drain (reserving about 1/2 cup of cooking water) and toss with the asparagus in the skillet (or in the pasta pot if the skillet isn’t large enough). Stir in about half of the pistachio aillade, and then add more, as needed, until the pasta is evenly coated. Add a few tablespoons of cooking water, as needed, to thin the sauce. Adjust acidity and seasoning to taste. Off the heat, add feta, tarragon, and parsley. Serve warm, at room temperature, or cold.
Tags:
- Pasta
- Vegetable
- Asparagus
- Lemon Juice
- Parsley
- Pistachio
- Tarragon
- Make Ahead
- Serves a Crowd
- Spring
- Memorial Day
- Mother's Day
See what other Food52ers are saying.
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Katrina Schonberg-Hamar
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Diana
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Jade Malonzo
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FrugalCat
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EmilyC
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8 Reviews
Katrina S. April 13, 2020
I made this tonight, I subbed fresh fettuccine because it’s what I had, and it worked well. I didn’t have tarragon but I did have fresh pea shoots so I added those in at the end of the vegetable cooking step. I added simple sautéed shrimp on top and this dish absolutely screams spring. A tasty combo, I really liked the feta with the pistachio and asparagus, I’ll think of other ways to combine these elements again.
Darian February 3, 2019
My family loved this! It worked especially well as a make-ahead/eat chilled or room temp as my daughter had a late soccer game and we were all on different schedules. I really liked the aillade and the depth it added to the pasta. The pistachios and asparagus worked really well together.
EmilyC May 2, 2019
Sorry I missed your comment, Darian! So glad you tried and liked this dish. Thanks for your note!
Diana November 5, 2018
This was delicious!
EmilyC November 6, 2018
Yay, glad you liked it! Thanks for the note!
Jade M. August 22, 2018
so I made this at home for a side dish and also served this for a lunch service for a catering company. Everybody was curious about it because it is made with pistachio aillade. They were kind of curious what this is. Everyone who had tried it, said it was amazing and very good. Few things that I would change is substitute canola oil or any neutral oil with virgin olive oil. Olive oil tends to get too bitter when I blend the nuts and EVOO together. I warm the nuts for less than 5 minutes, so it won't get too brown and burnt. This is really awesome with any spring vegetables, artichokes. Adding tarragon and parsley is really superb for this pasta dish.
FrugalCat April 28, 2018
Any nut would be good with this, I think. Certainly almonds or walnuts.
EmilyC April 28, 2018
Yes, almonds or walnuts can be subbed! Walnut aillade is the most traditional. I’ll admit that I’m partial to pistachio aillade...it’s so special with asparagus, artichokes, and other spring vegetables!
