PASTA WITH ZUCCHINI, RICOTTA & LEMON, CHILLI, BASIL & PARMESAN

SERVES 4-6 / PREPARATION 20 MINUTES / COOKING 15 MINUTES

It’s the use of the pasta cooking water that is the essential ingredient here; the starch loosens the sauce and makes it creamy. If you have zucchini flowers, add some at the end with the basil.

3 tablespoons olive oil

1kg zucchini, sliced into rounds

3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

½ teaspoon chilli flakes

½ cup dry white wine zest and juice of 1 lemon

50g parmesan or other hard, aged cheese,

finely grated, plus extra for serving 400g casarecce or other short pasta shape 250g ricotta

1 good handful of basil leaves, roughly torn

Heat the oil in a wide saucepan and add the zucchini in batches, frying gently until it has a little colour (approximately 5-7 minutes). Return all the zucchini to the pan and add the garlic and chilli flakes and cook for another minute, season generously with sea salt then add the white wine and cover with a lid. Cook, covered, over a low heat for 10 minutes (add a little more water if in danger of drying out). The zucchini should be soft and silky and the liquid will be mostly evaporated.

Meanwhile, put the lemon zest and juice in a large bowl with the parmesan and mix together; the juice of the lemon should slightly melt the cheese. Season with salt and pepper.

Cook the pasta according to packet instructions, reserving a good cup of the cooking water before draining.

Add the ricotta and around ½ cup of cooking water to the parmesan and whisk together. Stir through the pasta and the zucchini, adding a little more cooking water if required to keep the mix loose. Stir through the basil leaves and serve immediately, sprinkled with a little extra parmesan.

VEGETARIAN Ensure wine and cheese are vegetarian. VEGAN Ensure wine is vegan. Purée a packet of silken tofu in a food processor and use in place of the ricotta. Use vegan parmesan or use 1-2 tablespoons nutritional yeast. ■