This dish is quick and easy enough for a busy weeknight, yet rich and elegant enough to serve to weekend dinner guests. Shallots, cream, Parmesan, asparagus, lemon, and prosciutto work together beautifully, each holding their own in this eight-ingredient recipe. To speed things along, we cook the asparagus with the pasta in the same pot of boiling water. To make sure the asparagus is tender-crisp at the same that the pasta reaches al dente, purchase spears that are slightly thicker than pencil-size.
Notes
Don’t allow the shallots to brown. Sauté them over moderate heat just until softened to keep their flavor delicate, without any notes of caramelization that would compete with the other flavors in the dish.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
- 2 medium shallots - minced
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon grated lemon zest - plus 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 ounce Parmesan cheese - finely grated (½ cup), divided
- kosher salt
- ground black pepper
- 8-9 ounce container fresh fettuccine
- 1 pound asparagus - trimmed and cut on the diagonal into 2-inch lengths
- 4 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto - cut into ½-inch ribbons
Instructions
Make the sauce:
- In a 12-inch skillet over medium, melt the butter.
- Add the shallots and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and translucent, 3 to 5 minutes.
- Stir in the cream, lemon zest, half of the Parmesan, and ½ teaspoon pepper; remove from the heat and set aside.
Cook the pasta:
- In a large pot, bring 2 quarts water to a boil.
- Add the pasta, asparagus and 2 teaspoons kosher salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is al dente and the asparagus is tender-crisp.
- Reserve about 1 cup of the cooking water, then briefly drain in a colander, leaving water clinging to the pasta.
Finish and serve:
- Immediately add the pasta mixture and ½ cup of the reserved pasta water to the skillet.
- Cook over medium heat, tossing with tongs, until the pasta is lightly sauced, 1 to 2 minutes; add more reserved pasta water as needed so the sauce clings to the noodles.
- Add the lemon juice, then taste and season with salt and pepper.
- Transfer to a serving platter or individual bowls, then scatter on the prosciutto and sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan.