Serving up Spring

I was leaving college one evening after a long, dreary day huddled inside the dark warmth of ACEX (on top of some never-ending coursework), when I looked up to the sky, preparing for a deep, long sigh, as per any typical cold winter day. The sigh dissipated into thin air as the navy blue was replaced by a cloudless, cornflower blue. A few wisps of coral-coloured cotton candy clouds drifted past. It was 6pm and it was bright outside. A white, delicate petal from a plum blossom tree flew with the light breeze, swirling around in mid-air like a fairy. It wasn’t ‘till then when I realized that it was no longer winter anymore. South Kensington had awakened from its hibernation and blossomed into spring. I always believed that our palette changes with the seasons, so it’s time for a refreshing change! This prawn, lemon and asparagus tagliatelle is the perfect dish to celebrate those breezy, sunny afternoons, or a fix for those grey drizzly days. The lemon brightens up anyone’s mood while the dash of cream embraces all the flavours together.

Ingredients (two servings)

• Juice of 1 lemon (plus some peel and a few slices for garnishing)
• 110g fine asparagus, chopped into 1-inch long sections
• 250g of prawns
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• A pinch of crushed chilli, salt and pepper
• 100ml double cream
• 250g tagliatelle, linguine or spaghetti

Method

Cook your pasta according to the instructions on the packet, drain.

Meanwhile, heat up some olive oil in a big pan, pan-fry the prawns until slightly pink. Remove and set aside.

Sauté the asparagus, add the minced garlic and crushed chilli

Add a dash of pasta water, allow to simmer for 2 minutes on low heat.

Add the prawns and the cream, grated lemon peel and the lemon juice.

Stir and allow to bubble gently.

Stir in the pasta, season with salt and pepper.

Enjoy!