6 November 2010

ZUCCHINI PASTA

The lovely cook, Annunziata, in the Villa Nuvolari in Positano cooked a delightfully simple pasta dish for us one night on our recent trip. I have been waiting for the first zucchini of the summer to replicate this and today we bought some tiny vegetables from Quail Farm so here's our lunch.

• 100g linguine (Organic Rustichella d'Abruzzo from Sabato)
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (Duck Creek from Matakana)
• 1/2 small onion finely chopped
• 6 small handpicked summer zucchini, sliced finely
• Several sprigs thyme, leaves only
• 1 lemon, zest only
• Salt , pepper and grated Parmigiano Reggiano

Bring lots of salted water to the boil, add the linguine and cook until tender. Meanwhile heat the oil in a pan, and when hot add the onion. Saute until golden, then add the zucchini and saute over medium heat. Add the herbs and lemon zest and cook until the zucchini start to turn golden. Season to taste. Drain the pasta and toss into the pan with the zucchini. Gently stir together to combine, divide between two plates and serve at once with grated Parmigiano Reggiano.