We hope very much that you get sick of summer squash‘s ridiculously plentiful bounty before you get sick of us blogging about it. Still, before you write us off as overdoing it (there’s chips, saut ées, and cake, already we know), we offer up this simple pasta, in which the grated summer squash (from Cara’s shopping bag) has a rich, melt-in-your-mouth quality, only bettered by the addition of butter—rather than olive oil—garlic, and freshly grated Parmesan cheese. It is truly very good.
From my kitchen, albeit small, to yours,
Cara, THE QUARTER-LIFE COOK
Summer Squash Angel Hair
Serves 2
Ingredients
4 ounces angel hair pasta
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 small onion
2 garlic cloves, pressed
2 medium summer squash or zucchini, grated
salt
pepper
pinch cayenne pepper
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Bring a large pot of water to the boil.
Meanwhile, melt the butter in a medium saucepan. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until the onion is translucent, 5-10 minutes. Put in the pinch of cayenne pepper and of salt, then add the grated zucchini and the garlic and cook over medium heat until reduced, about 8 minutes. Sprinkle with pepper and a little more salt and turn the heat to low.
When the water is boiling, add a teaspoon of salt and the angel hair and cook according to package directions (angel hair cooks quite quickly - it will take only 2-3 minutes). Drain, reserving 1/3 cup of pasta water.
Add the angel hair and pasta water to the summer squash and turn the heat to high. Let the whole thing reduce, then scoop into a serving bowl and sprinkle with the cheese. Serve immediately.
