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Pasta frozen peas unsalted butter all-purpose milk Cheddar cheese cheese lemon juice lemon zest salt freshly ground black pepper mint fresh Italian parsley fresh sweet basil
Viewed: 27 - Published at: 9 years agoIngredients
- 1/2 pound cavatappi pasta (or other elbow macaroni pasta)
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 1/2 cups whole milk
- 2 cups grated medium white cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup grated aged asiago cheese
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh lemon zest (from about 2 lemons)
- Salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint leaves, plus more for garnish
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves, plus more for garnish
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh sweet basil leaves, plus more for garnish
Method
- Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Then add frozen peas into pot to cook them quickly for no more than 2 minutes. Drain pasta and peas together and do not rinse with water.
- In a pot over medium-high heat, heat butter until melted. While whisking constantly, add flour to form a smooth paste. Cook butter and flour together for about 2 minutes. While still whisking, pour in milk and mix until paste is thoroughly dissolved in milk. Allow milk to heat up and begin to simmer gently for about 5 minutes, just until sauce begins to thicken and coat the back of a wooden spoon. Adjust heat to low and allow the sauce to simmer gently for about 1 minute. While continuing to whisk, add white cheddar and asiago cheeses, handful by handful, so they melt evenly and slowly. After all cheese is added, mix in lemon juice, zest, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, chopped mint, chopped parsley, and chopped basil. Adjust sauce for seasoning.
- Add in drained pasta and peas and fold with cheese sauce until pasta is evenly coated. Serve immediately, with additional chopped herbs on top and a slice of lemon.
