Tomato Pasta with Asparagus

Tomato pasta is often one of my midweek meals as it is quick and easy to make after work. I have a load of asparagus leftover in my fridge and as spring is in full swing here in Berlin I decided to add this to my tomato pasta. It is all about seasonal cooking after all and the great thing about tomato pasta is that you can add more or less any leftover veg to it.

Ingredients:

Vegetarians: Just leave out the bacon.

fresh basil

diced bacon

juice of half a lemon

handful of mushrooms

1 400g tin of chopped tomatoes

2 tbpsn tomato puree

1 tspn balsamic vinegar

green asparagus (ends chopped and peeled)

1 clove garlic (crushed)

1 onion (finely diced)

ground black pepper

pinch of salt

olive oil

2 tomatoes (cut into chunks)

handful of green olives

• Add boiling water to a small/medium saucepan and add the asparagus. Place on the hob to boil
• Heat a large frying pan with olive oil. Once heated add the bacon, garlic and onions
• Then add the lemon juice and balsamic vingar. Leave to simmer and cook for 5 mins
• Add the mushrooms and then add the fresh chopped tomatoes. Leave for another couple of mins
• Then pour in the chopped tomatoes and mix well. Stir in the tomato puree and leave for another 5 mins
• Drain the asparagus
• Chop the asparagus into small pieces and add to the sauce. Also add the olives and mix well
• Take the tomato sauce off the heat and add black pepper and mix well
• Garnish with fresh basil

Serve with any pasta of your choice