A recipe – Pasta with Young Zucchini

The funny thing about pasta recipes is that it takes longer to write the recipe than to cook it!

For this recipe I have two “rules”:

1.     Food that is cut in the same shape is more esthetic. I mean, if we use penne pasta, it is better to cut the zucchini in the same way – 2 inches long, in thin strips. If we want to add some vegetables to rice, it is better to cut them to small cubes. It applies to salads, cooked food, desserts – everything. Try it!

2.     Zucchinis are so tasty raw, and they cook so fast. So to keep the zucchinis fresh and not too soft (or even mashed…), buy the small green zucchinis. I know that it is not acceptable and maybe even rude in supermarkets here, but check they are hard. Just squeeze them slightly. We do that in Israel all the time. You can’t buy fruits and vegetables just from looking at them.

Ingredients

Whole-wheat Penne or Tagliatelle pasta (amount for 2 people)

6 medium green zucchinis – thin slices

3 cloves of garlic

Freshly squeezed juice from - 1/2 lemon

A small bunch fresh basil leave

Salt and pepper

Olive oil

Freshly grated Parmesan

Directions

1.     Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook the pasta in boiling the water for 8-10 minutes or until done; drain and wash immediately with cold water (to stop the cooking process).

Meanwhile:

2.     Chop the garlic and sauté in olive oil for few seconds.

3.     Add the zucchinis and stir gently for 2 minutes. Add the lemon, salt and pepper and cook for 2 more minutes.

4.     Add the pasta to the zucchinis and then add the basil leave.

5.     Stir all together just to mix all the taste.

6.     Serve with grated Parmesan.