Orecchiette with Pesto and Fiddleheads

The secret to blending pasta with pesto sauce is to cut it with the pasta cooking water. It’s the warm, starchy water that binds the two together.

1 - 1 lb (450 g) pkg orecchiette pasta
3 cups (750 mL) fresh fiddleheads, steamed
1 shallot, minced
1/2 recipe Fiddlehead and Walnut Pesto
1/2 cup (125 mL) Parmesan or Romano cheese, grated
Black pepper to taste

In a large saucepan, boil pasta in salted water until al dente. Before draining, ladle out about 1 cup (250 ml) of pasta cooking water. Return pasta to saucepan. Stir in steamed fiddleheads, shallot, and pesto. Thin sauce with reserved pasta cooking water, adding a little at a time and stirring well between additions. Finish with cheese and generous grindings of freshly cracked black pepper.

Serves 6.

Each serving contains: 446 calories; 17 g protein; 17 g total fat (3 g sat. fat, 0 g trans fat); 59 g carbohydrates; 4 g fibre; 158 mg sodium

source: "Spring's Green Goodness", alive #331, May 2010