This Creamy Pasta Primavera with broad beans, courgettes (zucchini) & broccoli celebrates seasonal veggies quick & easy way. Perfect midweek family meal!
This quick, easy and delicious Creamy Pasta Primavera showcases beautiful, seasonal produce. We've gotten so used to having majority of fruit and veg all year round now that eating with seasons is not something we do anymore!
What is Pasta Primavera?
Pasta Primavera translates into Springtime Pasta (primavera means springtime in Italian). It was first invented by chef Sirio Maccioni in 1975 and became a huge hit in his New York City restaurant Le Cirque. (source Wikipedia)
My version of pasta primavera celebrates three veggie stars of the summer - broad beans, courgette (zucchini) and broccoli and is so wonderfully simple, creamy & delicious! This pasta is a perfect example that eating with seasons really is the way to go!
Can I use frozen broad beans in this pasta?
If you'd like to make this pasta outside of the broad bean season or you simply cannot get your hands on fresh ones, using frozen broad beans would be the next best thing! Frozen veggies are full of nutrients as they were usually frozen very shortly after picking and should most definitely be embraced in our kitchens. You cannot beat them in terms of convenience either!
Should I double-pod broad beans?
Some of you may find broad beans on a "tough" side (especially at the end of the season). You might want to go to trouble of double podding (peeling) them. This slightly mundane process shall reveal the most gorgeous and tender green flesh that is anything but tough. I warn you though , it is a bit of a faff but hey, where there is a will there is a way. You will most likely notice the difference towards the end of the season when the broad beans get a bit bigger and tougher. It is definitely worth to go to a trouble of double podding then.
How to double-pod broad beans?
In case you'd like to give double-podding a go simply remove the beans from their pods (initial podding) and pop them in a pot of lightly salted boiling water for anything between 5-8 minutes (depending on their size and how tender you'd like them). When the time is up drain them on the sieve or colander and pop under cold running water to stop them cooking. Now you should be able to easily remove outer skins of your broad beans revealing lovely green flesh. Easy peasy!
How can I adapt this recipe?
Feel free to play around with the quantities of your veggies and the veg itself. Try using asparagus and peas with courgette (zucchini) or swapping regular broccoli for tender stem variety.
You could swap mascarpone for creme fraiche or sour cream (full fat or light versions if you like).
In my opinion this pasta is best eaten fresh but if you have any leftovers you can try them cold or very gently reheated for lunch the next day. I would not recommend freezing this pasta!
Creamy Pasta Primavera
Ingredients
- 140 g broad beans podded weight
- 270 g broccoli florets 1 large head of broccoli
- 1 courgette (zucchini) roughly 140g/5 oz grated, skin on
- 3 garlic cloves crushed, minced or finely chopped
- 350 g pasta I used Cavatelli*, but any shape will do just fine
- 250 g Mascarpone light
- 20 g parmesan grated
- zest & juice of 1 lemon
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Wash and grate the courgette (skin on) on the large part of the grater.
- Cook broad beans and broccoli florets in a pan of salted boiling water until cooked but broccoli florets should be slightly al dente and nicely holding their shape. Set veggies aside and cook your pasta in the same water according to packet instructions. Drain but save some of the veggie/pasta water.
- Heat tablespoon of olive oil in a large pan, and gently fry crushed garlic and grated courgette until softened. Stir frequently as you don't want your garlic to burn.
- Add mascarpone, grated parmesan, zest & juice of lemon and mix well.
- Add cooked pasta, broad beans and broccoli and stir gently to warm them up in a pan.
- Add splash of saved pasta water to loosen sauce a bit, season to taste.
- Plate up and serve with additional sprinkle of grated parmesan and some fresh basil if you wish.
- Enjoy!
Notes
- Nutritional information is approximate, per serving and should be used as a guideline only.
- The quantities of all the veggies used are as per what I had on hand on the day. Your courgette and broccoli might be smaller or bigger so your quantities might vary. Go with what you've got! You can also play around with seasonal veggies - perhaps use peas and asparagus or tender stem broccoli instead.
- Feel free to double-pod your broad beans, see how above.
- You can substitute fresh broad beans with frozen when out of the season.
- This pasta is best eaten fresh and I wouldn't recommend freezing it!
Nutrition
Update Notes: This post was originally published on 2 September 2017 and updated in July 2019 with some helpful info and new recipe card.
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Sandhya Hariharan says
Love creamy pasta dish!! All the vegetables used here are my favourites!!!
joskitchenlarder says
Thank you Sandhya! Same here! 🙂
Danielle Wolter says
i just love that there is mascarpone cheese in this. It sounds just incredible!
joskitchenlarder says
Thank you Danielle! 🙂
Milica Vladova says
Mmmm, I love the creamy pasta recipes, especially those with mascarpone! Thank you for this suggestion!
joskitchenlarder says
Thanks Milica! Mascarpone is brilliant in terms of adding creaminess to pasta dishes, isn't it? I hope you enjoy it!
Tatiana says
This sounds SO GOOD! Can you just move in with me? HA! All your recipes are divine!!!
joskitchenlarder says
Ha ha thanks Tatiana! So kind! 🙂
Farah says
~So healthy easy and delicious ! Great recipe!
joskitchenlarder says
Thank you Farah!
Izzy says
This looks amazing, can't wait to try it. I bet asparagus would be a lovely addition to this dish too!
joskitchenlarder says
Thanks Izzy! I agree with you, asparagus would go really well here too!
Kat (The Baking Explorer) says
This looks delicious, it would be a perfect week night meal and I bet great heated up the next day too!
joskitchenlarder says
Thanks Kat! 🙂 It definitely is quick and easy to put together and leftovers taste as good too, perfect for lunch the next day! x
jenny walters says
Jo this looks and sounds beautiful.....again!!My husband would love this as he is almost obsessed with broad beans.I'm not so but didnt realise they were so much improved by peeling.Will def try this and earn some brownie points!xx
joskitchenlarder says
Thanks Jenny! 🙂 Double podding definitely improves the taste but I have to warn you it does feel like a bit of a punishment lol. Thinking about it it could be good, character building task for the kids 🙂 Now, that's an idea! xx
Corina Blum says
This is a lovely pasta dish for late summer! My kids have just gone back to school and pre-school today and it really does feel like summer is coming to an end. It's great to still have lovely fresh green produce like in this recipe though. Thanks for sharing with #CookOnceEatTwice x
joskitchenlarder says
Thank you! It's funny how the moment we see September on the calendar that's it, it's autumn now! Weather isn't helping either. All the wonderful summer foods are still here though but not for long hence my most likely last quite summery creation 🙂 x
Cat says
This looks really tasty and I love the shape of pasta you have used!
joskitchenlarder says
Thanks ? It's the first time I've used this shape and it worked really nice plus looked quite pretty too lol
Jacqui says
Oh this look delicious. I always double pod them. Yes its a fafa but until I did that I couldnt stand them. Personally i think it's worth the effort as the inside is just so tender and delish. But hey each to their own 😉
I can see us making this in my house easy and delish and i might just be naughty and add a little crispy bacon or pancetta on top. Oh dear I'm hungry now!
Thank you for linking to #CookBlogShare
joskitchenlarder says
What you like Jacqui, you're making me look lazy now lol 🙂 I've gone into trouble of double podding once and they were really lush but 99.9% of the time I find myself short on time and end up just throwing them in as they are.
That crispy bacon on top would work so nicely, wouldn't it! Mmm. x
Angela / Only Crumbs Remain says
It does feel sad that summer is over, it feels as though we've barely had a summer this yr with all of the wet weather. I'm hoping that we'll have a late burst of warm weather - I've got my fingers crossed 😉
I love the sound of your pasta dish Jo, it sounds so delicious and very easy to pull together too 🙂
Angela x
joskitchenlarder says
Thank you Angela! I'm super optimistic that Indian Summer is on the way 🙂 This pasta is oh so tasty and definitely one of those dinners you get on the table in no time at all. 🙂 x