Food - Summer Pastas
I love cooking with seasonal produce and herbs. Here are a few simple, yummy pasta dishes to enjoy.
zucchini marinara sauce fettuccine
This is one of my “go-to’s” for pasta sauce and in the summer, I like to add a little shredded zucchini to it.
recipe:
ingredients: use as much or little as you like
chopped tomatoes
chopped yellow onion or shallot
olive oil
pink sea salt & pepper
garlic
shredded zuchinni
chicken or veg stock
sugar (optional)
red wine (optional)
red pepper flakes (optional)
one small can tomato paste
fettuccine (or any kind of pasta)
saute onions in olive oil on medium high in skillet, add garlic and tomatoes, zucchini, tomato paste, stock and stir to combine
add seasonings & wine and simmer until pasta is cooked and drained
top with parmesan, salt & pepper
salmon basil cavatappi
I love taking leftovers and tossing them together with what I have on hand. I DO NOT like to waste food and will try my best to make the most of what we have (food costs keep going up so I try to be resourceful when possible). We had some salmon left from the night before so I simply cooked up some pasta and tossed it with some olive oil, basil, pistachios, pumpkin seeds, pine nuts and topped it will fresh parmesan, pink sea salt & pepper. It was a delicious, quick lunch bowl!
lemon ricotta sage pasta
Y’ALL! TWO WORDS: FRIED SAGE
Once, I had a pasta dish at a Brooklyn restaurant with my daughter, Hannah, where there were crispy sage leaves on top of the pasta but I had never made them myself. Oh. my. word. Just make them. It’s stupid easy and soooooo gooood! Simply pour a little olive oil in a small skillet on medium heat, pop a few sage leaves in, let them sizzle for a couple of minutes, remove after they stop sizzling and place on a paper towel, sprinkle with a little pink sea salt and let them cool and crisp up. Amazing what a little herb can do to add a punch of incredible flavor to pasta!
recipe: ( sort of) Sometimes, I just eyeball it.
I wish I could remember what kind of pasta this was and the label is no longer on the bag but you could really use any kind of pasta for this dish.
I sautéed a few sliced shallots in olive oil in a large skillet on medium high heat, then added fresh garlic. I used chopped deli ham (bacon or prosciutto would work too) we had in the fridge and added it to the skillet. After the pasta cooked (save about 1/2 cup of pasta water) and drained, I combined it in the skillet with some ricotta cheese, a little fresh lemon juice, pasta water, basil, salt & pepper. I topped it with the insanely delicious sage leaves, lemon zest and parmesan.
You’ll wonder how you ever lived without crispy sage.