Recipe: Shocking Pink Pasta (cream sauce using beets)

SHOCKING PINK PASTA (PATES ROSE VIF)

"For this unusual and remarkably quick pasta dish, you simply blend raw beets together with cream, garlic, and a touch of cumin. This produces a shocking pink sauce that is perfect for tossing with cooked pasta-preferably long strands, such as spaghetti or bucatini-and crowning with fresh parsley and chopped almonds. If you want to push it up a notch in terms of sophistication, roast baby beets and cut them in quarters to garnish the pasta."



12 ounces / 340 g beets, peeled and diced
1 cup / 240 ml light whipping cream (or unsweetened nondairy cream alternative, such as soy or rice)
1 garlic clove
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 teaspoon whole cumin seeds (or 1 to 2 teaspoon ground cumin)
1 pound / 450 g long pasta (such as spaghetti, bucatini, or linguine)
Freshly ground black pepper
1 cup / 20 g chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
2/3 cup/ 85 g almonds, toasted and roughly chopped

In a food processor or blender, combine the beets, whipping cream, garlic, salt, and cumin. Process until smooth.

Bring salted water to a boil in a large pot. Add the pasta and cook until it's a minute shy of al dente. Drain, return the pasta to the pot, and fold in the sauce. Return to medium heat and cook until heated through and al dente, about 1 minute.

Divide among warm howls, sprinkle with pepper, and top with the parsley and almonds. Serve immediately.

PREHEATING PASTA BOWLS:
To prevent pasta from cooling too quickly after serving, preheat the serving bowls or plates: a few minutes before your pasta is cooked, scoop a few tablespoons of the boiling pasta water into each bowl and set aside. Pour out the water just before serving; there's no need to dry the bowls.

Makes 4 servings
Used by permission to Recipelink.com from Clarkson Potter
Source: The French Market Cookbook by Clotilde Dusoulier