Pasta With Green Vegetables And Herbs

Mixing aromatic herbs like mint and basil with asparagus and peas creates a beautiful green dish. Salty feta sparks it up.

Yield:

Serves 4

Ingredients

1. 1 lb thin asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
2. 1 cup frozen peas
3. 1 lb linguine
4. 2 cups packed fresh basil leaves
5. 1 cup packed fresh mint leaves
6. 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
7. 3/4 teaspoon salt
8. 3/4 teaspoon black pepper
9. 4 1/2 oz feta, crumbled (1 cup)
10. 1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
11. 3 scallions, thinly sliced

Directions

1. Cook asparagus in a 6- to 8-quart pot of boiling well-salted water until just tender, 4 to 6 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a large heatproof bowl, then add peas to boiling water and cook 2 minutes. Transfer peas with slotted spoon to bowl with asparagus, then add linguine to boiling water and cook until al dente.
2. While linguine cooks, pulse basil, mint, oil, salt, pepper, and 1/2 cup feta in a food processor until chopped, then add to vegetables.
3. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta-cooking water, then drain pasta in a colander. Stir reserved cooking water into vegetables, then add pasta, parsley, scallions, and remaining 1/2 cup feta and toss.

Notes