Whole-Wheat Shells with Asparagus, Peas, Feta, and Mint

I snitched this recipe from the Vegetarian Times web site. It looks like a delicious spring dish. But if you're making this in the spring when asparagus and peas are fresh, you might not have fresh basil yet. What to do? For Ann Arbor-area folks, you could substitute Kenzoil for the garlic oil and basil - a locally-made, delicious and easy alternative. Oh, and anything's betta with feta, don'tcha think?

Serves 6

30 minutes or fewer

One large pot of boiling water is all it takes to make a pasta medley full of fresh spring vegetables. Blanching the vegetables in the boiling water also adds flavor to the pasta.

• 12 oz. whole-wheat pasta shells
• 1 lb. asparagus, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 ½ cups fresh or frozen baby peas
• 2 Tbs. garlic oil, such as Garlic Gold
• 3 green onions, thinly sliced (⅓ cup)
• 1 cup sliced fresh basil
• ½ cup coarsely chopped fresh mint
• 1 Tbs. grated lemon zest
• 3 oz. feta cheese, crumbled (¾ cup)

1. Bring large pot of water to a boil. Add asparagus, and cook 4 minutes, or until crisp-tender. Remove asparagus with slotted spoon; transfer to serving bowl.
2. Add pasta to boiling water; cook 5 minutes. Add peas, return water to a boil, and cook 2 minutes. Drain pasta and peas, reserving 1/4 cup cooking water, and return pasta and peas to pot. Stir in reserved cooking water, asparagus, garlic oil, green onions, basil, mint, and lemon zest. Season with salt and pepper, if desired; transfer back to serving bowl; and sprinkle with feta cheese, if using.