Easy pasta recipes are the best, especially when they produce dishes that are tasty. I’ve been working through one of my Italian cookbooks, trying to prepare as many pasta dishes as possible. I’m going in order and have been enjoying myself. Today’s recipe includes linguini, zucchini, and tomatoes, among a few other things.
The Recipe
Zucchini is an awesome fruit to cook with. When simmered and browned in olive oil, it takes on sort of a nutty flavor and when just the right amount of salt is added, the flavor becomes divine. This dish takes advantage of zucchini slices that are browned in olive oil; it also includes a nice tomato sauce, fresh basil, and the perfect texture of linguini. It’s a simple Italian dish, but one that hits the spot.
I pulled this recipe from The Complete Italian Cookbook by Carlo Bernasconi and Christian Teubner, although I made one substantial change. The recipe calls for homemade squid ink pasta. I have no idea where to find squid ink, and honestly, I’m not even sure I’m able to buy it in my area. Instead, I opted to use store bought (regular dried) linguini. Perhaps I’ll one day follow the recipe as it was intended, but for now, I’ll keep things basic.
Ingredients
Serves: 4
1 Pound Dried Linguini Pasta
1 Pound Zucchini, Sliced 1/8 Inch Thick
Olive Oil
Handful Fresh Basil, Chopped
Salt
Ground Black Pepper
For the Tomato Sauce
1 1/4 Ripe Plum Tomatoes, Diced
1 Cup Onion, Chopped
1 Garlic Clove, Minced
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 Teaspoon Salt
1/2 Teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
Make the Sauce
The sauce for this recipe is simple and straightforward. If you’d like to try out my other superb tomato sauce recipe, please feel free. For now though, I’ll give you the instructions for the sauce recipe from the book.
Heat the two tablespoons of olive oil in a medium sized saucepan over medium heat on your stovetop. Then add in the chopped onion and garlic. Cook and stir for a few minutes until both of these ingredients are softened. After that, add in the tomatoes, the one teaspoon of salt, and the half teaspoon of pepper.
Cover the pot and wait for the sauce to come to a simmer. When it does, reduce the heat to medium low and let it cook for about 20 minutes. When finished, remove from heat.
Cook the Pasta
Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat on your stovetop. Add one tablespoon of salt to the water and then add in the pasta. Allow the pasta to cook (stir a few times) for about 10 minutes or until al dente. When finished, strain the pasta through a colander.
Fry the Zucchini
Warm a large skillet over medium heat on your stovetop. Add two tablespoons of olive oil to the pan and then lay the slices of zucchini in the pan. Sprinkle a few pinches salt and pepper over the slices and then allow to cook for a few minutes on each side. You’re looking for a light brown. When you see this, remove the slices from the pan and turn off the heat. Repeat as necessary.
Plate & Serve
There are a few ways you can do this. You can toss the pasta with the basil and then plate the pasta with the zucchini and sauce on the side or you can toss the pasta with the basil in a large bowl and then add in both the sauce and zucchini slices and mix everything together. It’s up to you. Either way is great. Either way, you’ll need to combine the ingredients, plate, and enjoy. Just be sure to season with salt and pepper to taste.
If you try this recipe, please let me know your thoughts. Thanks!
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