During the summer I had a lot of free time on my hands. I am a traditional Irish cailín – red hair, blue eyes, blonde lashes and brows, pasty white skin with a pink hue. During the heatwave, spending time outdoors wasn’t really an option. Instead, I cooked and baked most evenings, practicing my styling and photography and obviously enjoying great food.

I bought my camera back in March – a Canon EOS 1300D. I would highly recommend this make and model if you’re thinking of purchasing a camera for food photography – you can get more tips in the Health Bloggers Community article “Best Camera for Bloggers: 2019 Update”.

Using simple ingredients, I created a pasta dish which I return to again and again. Italian-inspired, this dish is packed with fresh vegetables and sensational flavours.

The creamy texture is amazing. But guess what? There is no cream used in this recipe. By swapping cream for a mix of milk and cornflour, the calories and fat content of the dish are reduced.

Hope you enjoy!

Amy x

Ingredients
75g fusilli
1 tbsp olive oil
30g asparagus, sliced lengthwise
8 cherry tomatoes, halved
1 garlic clove, thinly sliced
2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
Salt and pepper
1 tbsp cornflour
200ml milk
1 tsp sun-dried tomato pesto
25g spinach

Method
Preheat the oven to 190°C.

Cook the pasta in a saucepan of salted water according to packet instructions and set aside.

Toss the asparagus and cherry tomatoes with the olive oil, rosemary, garlic, salt and pepper. Transfer to a baking tray and roast in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes.

Mix together the cornflour and 2 tbsp of milk to form a smooth paste. Combine with the remaining milk.

In the same saucepan that the pasta was cooked in, mix the drained fusilli with the cornflour mixture and heat until thickened, adding a splash of water if the pasta sticks to the saucepan.

When the vegetables are cooked, add them to the pasta along with the spinach. Season to taste and serve with a drizzle of sun-dried tomato pesto.