Pasta with Asparagus and Sundried Tomatoes

When we first moved to San Francisco, we were amazed by how good the produce was at our corner store.  The produce at the corner stores in New York was always limp and flavorless, so when we found good, fresh asparagus at our corner store in San Francisco in March, I came up with this recipe so that we could cook it twice a week.

Pasta with Asparagus and Sundried Tomatoes

Ingredients:

Dried pasta

1 bunch of asparagus (woody ends removed and broken into bits)

1 handful of sundried tomatoes (reconstituted in hot water for 10 minutes, drained and chopped)

2-4 dried red chili peppers

jalapeno olive oil

Serve with:

ground black pepper

shaved parmesan or aged gouda

Cook:

Boil water with salt and cook pasta.  

Heat oil in large pan.  Saute asparagus 4-6 minutes (depending on how thick they are) with tongs.  Add tomatoes, chili peppers.  Add pasta with a little of the pasta water. Toss and serve with ground black pepper and cheese.