Pasta with Zucchini Cream and Speck
Ingredients
- 11 oz short pasta of your choice (320 g)
- 3 medium zucchini
- About 1 cup speck, cut into strips (120 g)
- 1 garlic clove
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- About ⅓ cup grated Parmesan cheese, optional (40 g)
- Reserved pasta cooking water, as needed
- A few fresh basil leaves
- Salt, to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Wash the zucchini, trim the ends, and slice them into thin rounds.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil for the pasta.
- In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil and cook the speck until crispy. Remove it from the skillet and set aside.
- In the same skillet, add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil and the garlic clove. Add the zucchini and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender.
- Season lightly with salt, keeping in mind that the speck is already salty, and add a generous grind of black pepper.
- Cook the pasta according to package directions. Before draining, reserve about 1 cup of the pasta cooking water.
- Remove the garlic clove from the zucchini. Set aside a few zucchini slices for garnish.
- Transfer the remaining zucchini to a tall container or blender. Add the Parmesan cheese, if using, and a few tablespoons of the reserved pasta water. Blend until smooth and creamy.
- Return the zucchini cream to the skillet and warm it gently over low heat.
- Drain the pasta al dente and add it to the skillet with the zucchini cream. Toss well, adding a little pasta water at a time as needed to create a silky, creamy sauce.
- Stir in most of the crispy speck and mix gently.
- Divide among serving plates and garnish with the reserved zucchini slices, remaining speck, freshly ground black pepper, and basil leaves.
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