Looking for a comforting and easy mid-week dinner option? Our asparagus, smoked ham and cheese pasta will hit the spot.
We've used tender asparagus, leeks, salty cheddar and smoked ham for a simple dinner that comes together in only 30 minutes.
This dish doesn't require any fancy skills and you serve the creamy sauce at the end once you've plated up - so you don't have to worry about anything splitting or curdling on the stovetop!
We love using in-season British asparagus (which are at their best in May and June) and if you're looking at other ways to use them, or want to know the best way to cook asparagus, then take a look at our how-to guide for fail-safe cooking.
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Yields:
4
Prep Time:
15 mins
Cook Time:
15 mins
Total Time:
30 mins
Cal/Serv:
480
Ingredients
225g
wide-ribbon pasta, such as pappardelle
350g
fresh asparagus or French beans, trimmed
175g
leeks, trimmed and cut into fine shreds
300ml
carton single cream
75g
mature Cheddar cheese, grated
25g
freshly grated Parmesan
125g
thinly sliced cooked smoked ham, roughly chopped
Directions
Step 1
Cook the pasta in plenty of boiling salted water until just tender, then drain.
Step 2
Meanwhile, cook the asparagus or beans in boiling salted water for 7-10min or until just tender. Add the shredded leeks to the pot for the last 30sec, then drain the vegetables well and keep warm.
Step 3
Put the cream into a small pan with half each of the Cheddar and Parmesan. Heat until just beginning to boil, stirring now and then to prevent it from boiling over.
Step 4
Add the hot vegetables to the pasta and toss with the smoked ham and remaining cheese. Season with plenty of freshly ground black pepper (you won't need to add salt as the ham and cheese add a good level of saltinessy).
Step 5
Serve immediately on hot plates and pour the warmed cream mixture over each plate individually.
Tip
For a healthier sauce, use a lower-fat single cream.
An experienced and highly skilled team of food writers, stylists and digital content producers, the Good Housekeeping Cookery Team is a close-knit squad of food obsessives. Cookery Editor Emma Franklin is our resident chilli obsessive and barbecue expert, who spends an inordinate amount of time on holidays poking round the local supermarkets seeking out new and exciting foods. Senior Cookery Writer Alice Shields is a former pastry chef and baking fanatic who loves making bread and would have peanut butter with everything if she could. Her favourite carb is pasta, and our vibrant green spaghetti is her weeknight go-to. Lover of all things savoury, Senior Cookery Writer Grace Evans can be found eating crispy corn and nocellara olives at every opportunity, and will take the cheeseboard over dessert any time (though she cannot resist a slice of tres leches cake). With a wealth of professional kitchen know-how, culinary training and years of experience between them, they are all dedicated to ensuring every Good Housekeeping recipe is the best it can be, so you can trust they’ll work (and if they don’t – we’ll have the answer for why*) every time (*90% of the time the answer is: “buy an separate oven thermometer”!).
