This is a recipe that I made on the same day that I read it on Paola’s blog, because I happened to have all the ingredients, and needed to use up the carrots. What better recipe to use for such an occasion than one of Paola’s, as she specializes in recipes to prevent throwing away food.

It is fun to realize that I am typing this post in Calabria, 11 hours by car south-east of Paola. Usually she is 11 hours by car south-east of me!

The combination of carrots and almonds is very nice, and the sage adds a nice touch. For a vegan dish this has a lot of flavor. This is a simple dish with a small amount of ingredients, that can be prepared in the time it takes to boil the pasta.

Ingredients

For 2 servings

200 grams (.44 lb) short pasta, I used wholewheat penne

4 carrots, peeled and sliced

40 grams (4 Tbsp) almonds

4 sage leaves

4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, divided

salt

Instructions

Bring a pot of water to a boil. When the water boils, add salt and the pasta, and cook for the time indicated on the package for al dente. Meanwhile, make the sauce.

Chop the almonds coarsely and toast them briefly. They should be golden but not burnt. I did this in a pan as it was too hot to heat up the oven when I prepared this, but it is a lot easier to do it in the oven (8 to 10 minutes at 180C/350F). Toasting the almonds is the main change I made to Paola’s recipe. It gives more flavor to the almonds, which may be more necessary for me as the almonds are not as good as the ones you can get in Italy.

Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a frying pan and add the sliced carrots and sage leaves. Stir over high heat until carrots and sage are coated with the oil. Then season with salt and turn down the heat…

…and add a bit of pasta cooking water.

Cover the pan and allow the carrots to cook over low heat. If you sliced them in the right thickness, they will be tender but still firm to the bite by the time the pasta is done.

Drain the pasta and add to the carrots. Add the toasted almonds as well.

Toss to mix. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt.

Serve on preheated plates. Drizzle with very good extra virgin olive oil.

I agree with Paola’s suggestion not to serve this with parmigiano. It is not needed and would cover the delicate flavor of the carrots and almonds.

Flashback

Pasta with butternut squash and gorgonzola. The sweetness of the pumpkin works very well with the pungent blue cheese.