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Shaved Asparagus Pasta Salad

May 29, 2016 By Rachel 9 Comments

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Shaved Asparagus Pasta Salad – Kick off the summer picnic season with this light and tasty pasta salad that features fresh, seasonal asparagus and a yummy tarragon dressing.

Shaved Asparagus Pasta Salad

Memorial Day weekend is upon us. For international readers, the last Monday in May is a day when Americans remember those who died in active military service. In addition to being a day of remembrance, it also signifies the start of the summer season and much of the country will be grilling and picnicking. Hot dogs and hamburgers are the fare of choice with sides like baked beans and cold salads such as potato and pasta salad. There’s nothing more American than a Memorial Day or 4th of July picnic. And much because of the sacrifice of our service men and women, we’re able to enjoy it in safety and prosperity.

Tarragon Dressing

In the northeastern part of the country where I live, the growing season is just beginning. For a pasta salad, I chose to usher in the picnicking season with a simple shaved asparagus salad. It’s coated in a lemon tarragon dressing which makes it cool, fresh and light. I tested this one out on my husband and he’s a big fan.

Shaved Asparagus Pasta Salad

For my American readers:

Happy Memorial Day and picnicking from Dan and Rachel at Simple Seasonal!

Shaved Asparagus Pasta Salad

Shaved Asparagus Pasta Salad
 
Print
Prep time
30 mins
Cook time
10 mins
Total time
40 mins
 
Kick off the summer picnic season with this light and tasty pasta salad that features fresh, seasonal asparagus and a yummy tarragon dressing.
Author: Rachel Hanawalt
Cuisine: American
Serves: 8 servings
Ingredients
  • 16 oz linguine
  • 2 lbs asparagus
  • 6 quarts of water plus 2 tsp of salt for pasta
Lemon Tarragon Dressing
  • ¼ C vegetable oil
  • ¼ C sour cream
  • ¼ C lemon juice
  • zest of 1 lemon
  • ⅛ C fresh minced tarragon
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • ½ tsp salt
  • fresh cracked pepper to taste
Instructions
  1. Bring 5 quarts of water to a boil and then add the 2 tsp of salt to the pot once boiling. Cook the pasta according to the al dente package instructions, adding 30 seconds to a minute. (You're going for soft and chewy pasta, but not too hard nor too mushy).
  2. While the pasta is cooking, whisk together your dressing. Note that using fresh tarragon in this recipe really does make it.
  3. Once the pasta is done cooking, drain, but DON'T rinse it. Give it some gentle stirs to cool it down a little, and prevent it from sticking.
  4. Once the pasta is cool enough to handle but still a bit warm, add it to a bowl, pour your dressing over the pasta, and mix together. Because you're adding the dressing while the pasta is warm, it will absorb some of the dressing and be much tastier in the end. Place in the refrigerator to begin chilling while you prep your asparagus.
  5. Wash and cut the tough ends (where you see the color change from pale to a deeper green) off of your fresh asparagus just as if you were prepping it to cook. To shave the asparagus use a vegetable peeler by placing the asparagus flat on your cutting born and shaving down from the stem tip of the vegetable. After you shave down the asparagus to almost the end it is easier to shave buy putting it on the edge of your cutting board, so that your peeler is hitting the board as you peel. In the end you will be left with one thicker piece which should be reserved for using in another dish or discarded. Note: the shaving process is easier with larger, thicker spears of asparagus, so consider this when you're shopping.
  6. Once your done shaving the asparagus gently, evenly mix it in with the pasta and dressing. Chill for at least an hour before serving.
3.5.3208

Shaved Asparagus Pasta SaladShaved Asparagus Pasta Salad Nutrition Facts

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Filed Under: 4th of July, Asparagus, Healthy, Lemon, Memorial Day, Pasta, Recipes, Salads, Summer, Vegetarian Tagged With: 4th of July, asparagus, Lemon, linguine, Memorial Day, pasta, Picnic, Salad, tarragon, Vegetarian

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Comments

  1. Thalia @ butter and brioche says

    May 30, 2016 at 1:37 am

    this is such a delicious and simple pasta salad. so perfect for the season..i can always use a new asparagus recipe too!

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      June 3, 2016 at 9:30 am

      Thanks Thalia! I was going for simple and light.

      Reply
  2. adina says

    May 30, 2016 at 12:57 pm

    Nice to know what the Memorial Day is, I have been reading about it on several blogs, but didn’t really know what you celebrate exactly. 🙂 (too lazy to google too). I’ve never had asparagus this way, sounds really good!

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      June 3, 2016 at 9:37 am

      haha! I’m glad to have answered your Memorial Day question.

      Reply
  3. Renee says

    June 1, 2016 at 1:46 am

    I am so excited to give this recipe a try! It looks amazingly delicious! Pinning 🙂

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      June 3, 2016 at 9:49 am

      Thanks for pinning Renee! You’ll have to come back and tell me how it turned out!

      Reply
  4. Karly says

    June 8, 2016 at 12:35 pm

    This looks so delicious! Thanks for linkin’ up with What’s Cookin’ Wednesday!

    Reply
    • Rachel says

      June 20, 2016 at 8:37 am

      Thanks Karly!

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Asparagus is in Season in Pennsylvania - Here Are 5 Recipes to Try at Home - Pa Veggies : Pa Veggies says:
    May 6, 2020 at 12:33 pm

    […] Shaved Asparagus Pasta Salad […]

    Reply

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Hi, I'm Rachel! Welcome to Simple Seasonal, a resource for simple, healthful, and delicious recipes that help you make the most of seasonal produce from your local farmer's market, CSA, or home garden. Simple Seasonal is committed to a whole foods diet. With an occasional cookie... ;)


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