HOLY FLAVOUR EXPLOSION.
I had to start this off in CAPS LOCK to express my excitement. Not only was this pasta dish quick and easy to make, but it was blow-your-mind-tasty. It’s one of those I-can’t-believe-it’s-vegan dishes that you can serve to your friends and be like, oh, this little thing, it’s so simple, no biggie! Stop what you’re doing and make this now.
Ingredient substitutions? We got you covered! Don’t like sundried tomatoes? Add fresh ones instead! Don’t like olives? Exchange them for chopped macadamia nuts or pumpkin seeds! Don’t have green beans? Use asparagus! See? No reason why you can’t make this, like, right now.
Ingredients
2 tbsp grapeseed or canola oil (for cooking)
125g (4oz) dry or fresh tagliatelle (or any other long flat pasta, such as fettuccine)
200g fresh green beans
2 medium zucchini (courgettes), cut into strips
1/2 cup frozen sweet peas
1/4 cup chopped olives
1/4 cup chopped sundried tomatoes
zest from one lemon
6 cloves of garlic
cracked black pepper, to taste
optional: 1/4 cup grated fresh parmiggiano reggiano or grana padano*
Method
Prepare your veggies and have everything ready before starting. Bring a large pot of water to boil. While you’re waiting, oil a cast iron or carbon steel pan. Get it really hot and drop in your beans and zucchini. Turn the heat down as they sizzle.
Once your pasta water is boiling, put your pasta in and put a 6 min timer so you don’t overcook it.
Go back to your veggies and move around with a wooden spoon or heatproof spatula. Scrape the bottom of the pan to make sure all those toasty bits of flavour are incorporated into the mix.
Toss in your chopped sun-dried tomatoes and olives.
Grate garlic and lemon over the whole mix. Add frozen peas and mix until just defrosted and warmed up. Drain your pasta once it’s ready (set aside if it’s ready before the veggies!)
Toss everything together and add some black pepper. Add frozen peas at the end, just before you add your drained pasta.
*If you’re vegan, omit this ingredient as it isn’t absolutely necessary!
