Why we love this recipe
This vibrant pasta dish calls for a medley of spring veggies: asparagus, snap peas, and arugula. Eating seasonal produce is highly recommended in Ayurveda. Vegetables picked during peak ripeness are higher in both nutrients and prana (life essence). Eating with the seasons helps to align your body with nature’s rhythms. Try our Summer Pasta for Pitta and Winter Pasta for Vata.
A warm spring pasta salad
Many restaurants and cafes offer chilled pasta salad, but in Ayurveda salads are generally a little warmer. The reason: cooked veggies are easier to digest.
Chilled ingredients extinguish the digestive fire, or agni; room temperature is a wiser choice. If you’re a fan of cooler salads, it’s better to serve them during hot weather, when their cooler influence can help balance fiery Pitta dosha, the mind-body energy associated with fire and water.
This Ayurvedic pasta recipe calls for veggies that are ever-so-lightly cooked, while remaining fresh and vibrant. Slicing snap pea pods brings out a different personality in the vegetable, rather than leaving them whole.
Serves 4
Ingredients
- ½ pound of dried fettuccine or linguine or 1 pound fresh
- 2 cups of snap peas, stringed and cut into thirds
- ⅓ cup sunflower oil
- Pinch of hing (optional)
- 2½ cups of asparagus, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
- 4 cups coarsely-chopped arugula
- Liquid seasoning or salt
- Black pepper
Directions
- Cook the pasta until al dente. Drain.
- Heat the oil in a large wok or skillet.
- Add the hing and sauté over medium heat for 30 seconds, until fragrant.
- Add the vegetables. Sprinkle with liquid seasoning or salt and pepper to taste, cover, and cook for 3 to 5 minutes, until tender, stirring a few times.
- Toss with the pasta. Adjust seasoning.
Recipe is reprinted with permission from Heaven's Banquet, by Miriam Kasin Hospodar. April 2000
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