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1
Snap off the tough ends of the asparagus.
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2
Bring a large pot of water to a boil, and add the asparagus spears.
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3
Cook until just tender, about 4 minutes.
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4
Without emptying the water from the pot, lift out the asparagus spears and set aside to cool slightly.
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5
Bring the water back to a boil.
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6
Add salt, if needed, and add pasta.
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7
Cook until the pasta is al dente.
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8
Reserve 1 cup of pasta cooking water, and drain and rinse the pasta with cool water.
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9
Put into a serving bowl.
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10
Trim off the top 3 or 4 inches of the asparagus spears, and put the tips into the bowl with the pasta.
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11
Cut the bottoms into several pieces, and set aside to use in the pesto sauce.
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12
Use a food processor to make the pesto: With the processor running, drop in the garlic cloves and allow them to chop.
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13
Add 2 tablespoons of the pine nuts, and pulse to chop.
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14
Add the lemon juice, basil, salt, and the asparagus pieces (not the tips!)
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15
along with 4-6 tablespoons of the reserved pasta water.
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16
(Start with 4 tablespoons water and add more as needed.)
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17
Puree until smooth.
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18
Toss the pasta and asparagus tips with the pesto, and season with salt and pepper to taste.
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19
Sprinkle with the remaining pine nuts or nutritional yeast, and serve warm or refrigerate until ready to serve.
