Spaghetti al Limone con Asparagus

Evan Funke, chef-owner of L.A.’s pasta temple, Felix Trattoria, believes that pasta sauce should celebrate the craftsmanship of pasta rather than try to steal the spotlight. The citrusy olive oil sauce that naps on these noodles does just that, bringing out the spaghetti’s limber, delicate nature.
Even Says, do your best to thinly slice the asparagus on a deep diagonal so that it bends and twirls around your fork just as easily as the spaghetti does.

Yield:
serves 4 persons
Category:
Pasta
Cuisine:
Italian

INGREDIENTS:

  • lb. spaghetti
  • ⅔ cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 large bunch asparagus, trimmed, thinly sliced on a deep diagonal
  • 4 garlic cloves, smashed
  • 4 3"-long strips lemon zest
  • ½ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
  • 8 large basil leaves
  • 2 lemons, halved
  • 2 oz. Parmesan, finely grated (about 1 cup), plus more for serving

DIRECTIONS:

  1. Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water, stirring occasionally, until al dente. Drain pasta, reserving 1½ cups pasta cooking liquid.
  2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot over medium-high until shimmering. Add asparagus, season with salt, and cook, stirring often, until just beginning to take on color, about 1 minute. Add garlic, lemon zest, and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Remove from heat and let sit until pasta is done.
  3. Add pasta and basil to pot with asparagus mixture and return to medium-high heat. Squeeze juice from both lemons into pot and add 2 oz. Parmesan and 1 cup reserved pasta cooking liquid. Cook, tossing vigorously and adding more pasta cooking liquid if needed, until sauce is creamy and emulsified and pasta is coated, about 1 minute. Taste and season with more salt if needed. Remove and discard garlic.
  4. Divide pasta among bowls, placing a lemon strip in each

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