Creamy Zucchini Pasta (without cream)
Incredibly flavorful and creamy pasta made with caramelized zucchini, garlic, and shallots. There is no cream added to this delicious summery pasta dish!
Servings: 2
Equipment
- Pan with a lid
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 2 Zucchini or about 1 pound; diced into roughly 1 inch or so pieces (see Note 1)
- 1 Shallot chopped
- 3 cloves Garlic peeled and left whole, lightly smashed
- ½ teaspoon Kosher Salt
- ¼ teaspoon Black Pepper
- ¼ teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes optional; use more or less to taste
- 8 ounces Spaghetti or pasta of choice
- 2 cups Pasta Water reserve lots of pasta water; you won't use all of it, but make sure you have enough
- 2 tablespoons Unsalted Butter
- 2 tablespoons Pecorino Romano grated (see Note 2)
- 2 tablespoons Parmesan Cheese grated (see Note 2)
- 1 tablespoon Lemon Juice more to taste
- Fresh Basil to serve (see Note 3)
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the diced zucchini, chopped shallot, lightly smashed whole pieces of garlic, salt, black pepper, and optional red pepper flakes. Stir to combine. Cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Cover the pot with a lid and lower the heat to medium-low. Cook for about 40 minutes or until soft and jammy. Uncover every 10 minutes or so and stir. Use a wooden spoon to gently press down on the zucchini to help soften. If the zucchini starts to burn, add a splash of water to deglaze the pan and lower the heat.
- Once the zucchini is almost finished, cook your pasta in boiling salted water. Cook about 1 minute shy of al dente. Transfer the pasta directly to the zucchini to finish cooking in the sauce.
- Add the Pecorino Romano, Parmesan, butter, and a ½ cup of pasta water to the pan with the zucchini and pasta. Continuously stir for a minute or two until a glossy creamy sauce is formed. Continue to add splashes of pasta water as you stir. I used quite a bit of pasta water so make sure to reserve plenty.
- Stir in the lemon juice then divide among bowls to serve. Top with fresh basil and additional cheese as desired.
Video
Notes
- Note 1: I left the skin on. The zucchini will melt down as it cooks, so exact piece size is not important.
- Note 2: Use ¼ cup Parmesan or ¼ cup Pecorino Romano if you prefer just one cheese.
- Note 3: I used Thai basil, but sweet basil works too.
Nutrition
Calories: 675kcal | Carbohydrates: 96g | Protein: 21g | Fat: 24g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 0.5g | Cholesterol: 40mg | Sodium: 860mg | Potassium: 857mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 883IU | Vitamin C: 40mg | Calcium: 179mg | Iron: 3mg
