Recipe: Asparagus-Goat Cheese Pasta

Asparagus-Goat Cheese Pasta

1 lb. asparagus
1/2 lb. thin spaghetti
1 tbsp. unsalted butter
2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 (14 1/2 oz.) can chicken broth
4 oz. goat cheese
1 tsp. grated lemon peel
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Salt (to taste)
Pepper (to taste)

In a large pan, boil lightly salted water over high heat. Clean and trim the ends of the asparagus and cut the stalks into 2 inch pieces. Blanch in the boiling water for 3-4 minutes or until bright green and crisp but tender. With a slotted spoon, remove the asparagus and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking. Add the spaghetti to the boiling water and cook according to the package directions until al dente; drain. In another pan over medium heat, melt the butter and blend in the flour with a whisk. Add the broth and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly, until the sauce thickens. Blend in the goat cheese and lemon peel. Toss the spaghetti with the asparagus, sauce and Parmesan. Serve.

*Johnna's tip: The part that says "stirring constantly", yeah, make sure you do that. We almost made the mistake of just letting the mixture sit there on the stove and what it was becoming was just a big pot of water instead of a big pot of sauce. We found this recipe online and had to try it out especially when we saw that goat cheese was involved in the process, we loovve goat cheese. Try topping with your favorite garnish such as green onions or fresh parsley.