Pasta In Almond Garlic Sauce

I promised many food posts this week and I will deliver! Tonight, I made a pasta with almond garlic sauce recipe that I came across in my latest issue of Gourmet. This dish was pretty easy and quick to throw together. Unfortunately, I was not able to find blanched almonds at TJ's so I had to blanch the almonds myself. This was probably the most time consuming thing as I had to slip each almond out of it's skin after soaking the almonds in boiling water for 1 minute. Easy but tedious. Once that was done, the rest was a breeze. The VitaMix blender was able to puree the almond garlic paste into a silky smooth mixture. The cheese made it nice and creamy (sans actual cream) and the basil, mint, and peas really lightened it up. The lightness of the dish fooled me into eating beyond my comfort level but it was worth it. I had planned to make chocolate souffles to accompany this dish but seeing as how I forgot to buy chocolate at the grocery store (doh!), the souffles will have to wait for another day.

Pasta In Almond Garlic Sauce
Courtesy of Gourmet Magazine

3/4 cup whole blanched almonds (4 ounces)
3 garlic cloves, smashed
3/4 cup water
1 pound cavatappi or other small tubular pasta
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoon unsalted butter, divided
1 (10-ounces) package frozen peas
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano plus additional for serving
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup basil leaves (torn if large), divided
1/3 cup mint leaves (torn if large), divided
1/3 cup chopped roasted almonds (2 ounces)

Purée blanched almonds and garlic with water and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a blender until smooth.

Cook cavatappi in a pasta pot of boiling salted water (3 tablespoons salt for 6 quarts water) until almost al dente. Reserve 3 cups pasta-cooking water and drain pasta.

Meanwhile, heat oil and 1 tablespoon butter in a 12-inch heavy skillet (preferably straight-sided) over medium heat until foam subsides. Add almond purée and simmer, whisking occasionally, until thickened, about 3 minutes. Add 2 1/2 cups reserved cooking water, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and simmer, whisking occasionally, until slightly thickened, 3 to 4 minutes. Whisk in remaining 2 tablespoons butter until melted. Add pasta and peas and cook, stirring occasionally, until pasta is al dente (sauce will be thin), 2 to 3 minutes. Add cheese and lemon juice and stir until combined well. Remove from heat and stir in half of basil and mint and salt and pepper to taste. Serve pasta in bowls topped with chopped almonds, remaining herbs, and additional cheese.