Asparagus and Spaghetti with Prosciutto - Risotto Style

I adapted this recipe from Chef Walter Citterio's Green Cauliflower Soup recipe. Walter is so inspiring I was ready to make his soup recipe but decided to adapt it using what I had in the fridge. It came out great. Prosciutto goes so well with asparagus it was a perfect addition. This is simple and fast. The entire time from start to eating was about 30 minutes or less.

I have been using Swanson's Organic Chicken Broth and I must say it is very good. But use whatever chicken stock, broth, bullion or base you have. If you want to make this vegetarian omit the prosciutto and use a vegetable stock. Works out really great this way as well.

This recipe is enough for two.

Ingredients:

1 Bunch of Asparagus

1 Leek -washed and sliced thinly

1/2 of a medium onion - peeled and sliced thinly

3 - 1/4 inch slices of prosciutto cut into Juliane strips

4 cups of chicken broth

1/2 lb. of dry spaghetti broken into pieces

2 Tablespoons of butter

Parm. Cheese

Olive oil

Black pepper

Hot pepper flakes - optional

Method:

Wash the asparagus and trim the bottoms about a third of the way down. Put the bottom sections into the broth and allow the asparagus flavor to meld with the broth. When the asparagus is very soft discard. Cut the tops off the asparagus and then cut the stalks in a diagonal cut about an inch long. Separate the stalk pieces from the tops. They have different cooking times and are added to the pan at different times.

OK now that you have everything prepped, its time to make the dish. At this point it will only take about 12 minutes or so.

Saute the prosciutto in a little olive oil until a bit crispy, add the leeks and onions and continue to cook for several minutes, add the stalk pieces of asparagus and cook for a couple minutes and then add the broken pieces of spaghetti. Stir around and then add most of the broth, reserve a little of the broth as you may need to add it in. Stir well, let all this cook for several minutes and then add the tops, add a little more broth if needed. Continue cooking till the spaghetti is very al dente. Six to eight minutes or so. Take away from the heat and add the butter, stir really well until everything is incorporated. Add the hot pepper if you like.

Sprinkle with a generous amount of Parm Cheese and a bit of black pepper.

Plate a large portion, you will save a trip for seconds.

As always your comments are welcomed.