Salt & Lavender

Eat well flavored! Easy & tasty recipes made from real ingredients.

Healthy Shrimp and Asparagus Pasta Recipe

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This easy healthy shrimp and asparagus pasta is deliciously lemony, fast, and uses only a handful of ingredients. Ready in 20 minutes!

This easy healthy shrimp and asparagus pasta is deliciously lemony, fast, and uses only a handful of ingredients. Ready in 20 minutes!

The shrimp and asparagus really shine in the oil, lemon juice, and parmesan cheese sauce. It really is a dish that’s reminiscent of spring even though spring is still far away (here in Canada anyway).

This asparagus and shrimp pasta recipe is nice and satisfying, but it’s also light enough that you don’t get that carb crash that often comes with pasta dishes that are coated in a heavy cream sauce.

This easy healthy shrimp and asparagus pasta is deliciously lemony, fast, and uses only a handful of ingredients. Ready in 20 minutes!

I’ve been trying to use less heavy cream in my recipes. Some recipes really need it, but I’m trying not to make it my go-to for every single pasta recipe I make. So, I’ve been using more half-and-half. It was going to go into this recipe until I totally botched the sauce and managed to separate it.

I should have known that the lemon juice would curdle it, but I did it anyway and ended up throwing the first batch of sauce away (thankfully no shrimp were involved yet).

This easy healthy shrimp and asparagus pasta is deliciously lemony, fast, and uses only a handful of ingredients. Ready in 20 minutes!

I’m actually pretty glad plan A failed and I moved onto plan B.

I ended up with a light and cheerful pasta that really didn’t need any creaminess to be good.

This easy healthy shrimp and asparagus pasta is deliciously lemony, fast, and uses only a handful of ingredients. Ready in 20 minutes!

Hope you love this shrimp asparagus pasta!

Let me know in the comments below if you’ve made it. 🙂

This easy healthy shrimp and asparagus pasta is deliciously lemony, fast, and uses only a handful of ingredients. Ready in 20 minutes!
5 from 5 votes
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Healthy Shrimp and Asparagus Pasta Recipe

This easy healthy shrimp and asparagus pasta is deliciously lemony, fast, and uses only a handful of ingredients. Ready in 20 minutes!

Course Main Course
Cuisine Italian
Keyword shrimp and asparagus pasta
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Servings 4
Author Salt & Lavender

Ingredients

  • 8 ounces farfalle (bow tie) pasta
  • 1 bunch of asparagus ends trimmed, cut into bite-size pieces
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice + zest from 1/2 lemon
  • 1 pound medium shrimp thawed & peeled (tails on optional)
  • 4 cloves garlic minced
  • 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese 
  • 1 tablespoon fresh parsley chopped
  • Salt & pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Boil a large, salted pot of water for the pasta. Cook al dente according to package directions.
  2. Meanwhile, prep your other ingredients.
  3. Add the oil and lemon juice + zest to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the asparagus and sauté for 2 minutes, stirring often.
  4. Stir in the shrimp and garlic. Cover the skillet, reduce the heat to medium, and let it cook for 3 minutes. If the shrimp are still a little gray, cover the pan again and continue cooking them for another minute or two (be careful not to overcook).
  5. Stir in the parmesan, fresh parsley, and 1 tablespoon of the pasta water. Drain the pasta and add it to the skillet. Season with salt & pepper as needed. Add an extra squeeze of lemon juice as well if desired. Serve immediately. 

Love asparagus and pasta? You may also like my asparagus and mushroom pasta or my lighter asparagus and bacon pasta.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  10. Lynn says

    July 2, 2018 at 2:46 PM

    Had this for dinner Saturday night. Loved it so much I’m fixing it again tomorrow night! Didn’t have the fresh parsley, but I didn’t miss it. Might try a little dries parsley next time.

    Reply

  11. Lily Deliyanni says

    April 7, 2019 at 10:01 AM


    I made it and it’s really fantastic!
    So light and fresh,full of flavor!
    I added some red pepper too and it was super!

    Reply

  12. Lisa Overton says

    April 16, 2019 at 1:51 AM


    I made this for my son and daughter in law Sunday and everyone loved it ! They said it was restaurants quality! I will definitely make this again. Thank you for the great recipe.

    Reply

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