Cooking with Wine: White Wine Pasta with Asparagus

This simple yet flavorful dish is the perfect way to highlight the beautiful complexities of a good white wine sauce.

Ingredients

• 8 oz penne pasta
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/4 yellow onion, diced
• 4 garlic cloves, diced
• 10-15 thin asparagus stalks trimmed and cut in 2 inch pieces
• 4 tbsp butter
• 1/2 cup dry white wine, such as Sauvignon Blanc
• juice of half a lemon
• 1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 tbsp parmesan cheese, grated
• pinch crushed red pepper flakes

Method

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the penne according to package instructions.
2. While the penne is cooking, heat olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add garlic and onion and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently. Add asparagus and cook for an additional 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Increase heat to medium-high and add butter, white wine and lemon juice. Bring to a boil and then and simmer for 5 minutes until sauce has reduced by half.
4. Drain pasta and add to the pan. Stir to combine.
5. Top with parsley, parmesan cheese and red pepper flakes.