Last week was full of celebrations in our house. My son’s 2nd birthday, my Dad’s 64th birthday, Father’s Day and the end of the school year for my 3 year old. Between all of these “events”, cooking and blogging took a bit of a backseat (although I did slave away over these homemade croissants from Sally’s Bake Blog as a Father’s Day surprise!), but I’m back at it with this super easy summer pasta recipe!
This recipe screams summer flavors and completely fits the bill of “simple fancy.” By my definition – so simple that it only takes 10 minutes to cook but “fancy” enough that it’s something you’d probably order right off a restaurant menu if you could! Perfect for a weeknight dinner or a night you’re entertaining, you can easily scale up the ingredients and portions to the number of guests at your table.
Sweet Corn Ravioli with Sautéed Asparagus + Mushrooms
A light and bright summer pasta special, with creamy ravioli, fresh flavors and a zing of lemon.
Ingredients
- 2 TBSP olive oil
- 1 bunch of Asparagus, woody ends trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces
- 1 package of baby bella mushrooms, sliced
- A dozen garlic cloves, sliced
- 1/2 cup sweet corned (frozen or canned)
- 1 lb package of ravioli of your choice (I used Trader Joe's Sweet Corn Burrata Ravioli)
- 2 TBSP butter
- 1 TBSP lemon juice
- Fresh basil and scallions for garnish
- Salt and pepper to seasoning
- Lemon zest
- Whipped ricotta or parmesan, optional
- Good quality olive oil for finishing
Directions
- Step 1 Start boiling water and prepare your ravioli according to package directions.
- Step 2 Sauté the vegetables, starting with the asparagus. Add your olive oil to a large skillet and cook over medium high heat for about 4-5 minutes. Add the mushrooms, corn, and garlic and continue to sauté until softened. Add the butter and lemon juice to the pan, swirl around until a light sauce forms. Remove from heat.
- Step 3 Plate the dish by spooning cooked ravioli until a bowl. Top with the sautéed vegetables and sauce. Garnish with fresh chopped basil and scallions, some lemon zest and optional cheese (I love a spoonful of ricotta). Season with salt + pepper and a drizzle of high quality extra virgin olive oil (or truffle oil!) if you have it!
RAVIOLI OPTIONS AND ALTERNATIVES:
As the recipe title hints, I made this recipe with a Sweet Corn Ravioli, courtesy of Trader Joes – see below, sorry it’s not the prettiest pan shot but aren’t those ravioli divine?! I actually also made a second batch for my husband (who can’t go a meal without a dense protein) using a Sausage Tortellini as the base. So any ravioli goes – don’t feel like you hit a wall just because you can’t get or find the Trader Joe’s version (although it’s a perfect pairing if you do!). My friend who inspired this recipe used a Crab Ravioli which also sounded amazing!
You’d probably think that the ravioli takes center stage, but the fresh flavors of the vegetables, with a pop of that lemon butter sauce is really the star of the dish here, not the ravioli. I just like a cheesy pasta base to soak up all the sauce and that’s where a soft ravioli “sponge” comes in. But by all means you could toss any pasta, or even a gnocchi, with this sauce and achieve the same awesome results. And tossing it with that gorgeous fine olive oil in the last step (like this treasured EVOO we brought back on a trip to Spain) is SO worth it. Sometimes cooking is all in the details and those special little touches!