Week 5: Complete Meal Plan - Spring Garden Table

We turn toward lighter, greener cooking — peas, asparagus, herbs — without losing the comfort. The season does half the work.

This Week’s Menu

• Monday — Spring Pea & Ricotta Pasta with mint (Italian night)

• Tuesday — Lemon-Herb Roast Chicken with asparagus

• Wednesday — Spring Vegetable & White Bean Soup

• Thursday — Shrimp & Asparagus Stir-Fry over rice

• Friday — Spring Greens Frittata with goat cheese

Monday — Spring Pea & Ricotta Pasta with Mint

Serves 4 · About 25 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 lb shells or orecchiette

• 2 cups peas (fresh or frozen)

• 1 cup whole-milk ricotta, zest of 1 lemon

• 3 tbsp olive oil, 2 garlic cloves minced

• Handful mint and basil, pecorino, salt, pepper

Method

• Boil pasta; add peas for the last 2 minutes. Reserve 1 cup pasta water.

• Warm garlic gently in olive oil. Off heat, whisk in ricotta, lemon zest, and a splash of pasta water to a loose cream.

• Toss pasta and peas in the ricotta sauce, loosening with more water. Finish with torn mint, basil, pecorino.

Why this works: Whisking the ricotta off the heat with pasta water turns it into a silky sauce — direct heat would make it grainy.