Pasta Primavera 🍝🌽: A Flavorful Spring Pasta Recipe
Pasta Primavera is a vibrant, veggie-packed pasta dish that's light, fresh, and perfect for spring and summer. With colorful vegetables, tender pasta, and a simple garlic-parmesan sauce, it's a satisfying and healthy meal that can be made in under 30 minutes.
Equipment
- Large pot
- - Large skillet
- - Cutting board
- - Knife
- - Tongs or pasta fork
- - Colander
Ingredients
- - 12 oz pasta penne or fettuccine work well
- - 2 tbsp olive oil
- - 3 cloves garlic minced
- - 1 cup cherry tomatoes halved
- - 1 zucchini sliced
- - 1 yellow squash sliced
- - 1 red bell pepper sliced
- - 1 cup broccoli florets
- - 1 carrot thinly sliced
- - Salt and black pepper to taste
- - ½ tsp red pepper flakes optional
- - ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- - ¼ cup chopped fresh basil or parsley
- - Juice of ½ lemon
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta according to package instructions until al dente. Reserve ½ cup of pasta water, then drain.
- While pasta cooks, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and sauté for 1 minute until fragrant.
- Add all vegetables except tomatoes to the skillet. Sauté for 5–7 minutes, stirring often, until just tender.
- Add cherry tomatoes and cook for another 2 minutes. Season with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes.
- Toss cooked pasta into the skillet with the vegetables. Add reserved pasta water a little at a time to loosen the mixture.
- Stir in lemon juice, Parmesan, and fresh basil. Mix well until everything is coated and warmed through.
- Serve immediately with extra Parmesan and herbs on top.