Thinking ahead about my garden zucchini patch, I have a plan for the overload I am expecting. In this recipe, grating the zucchini makes it easily become part of the sauce for this quick-to-make pasta dish. Grate a lot of it and freeze for use in future sauces; add it to meatball mixtures; stir it into bubbly soups and sneak it into muffins and of course, don’t forget the zucchini bread!

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Pasta with Zucchini Sauce

INGREDIENTS

2 tablespoons olive oil

5 cups grated zucchini

Salt and pepper to taste

½ cup cream

Salt and pepper to taste

½ pound rigatoni, bowties or screws

3 cups grated pecorino cheese with black peppercorns

1/4 to 1/3 cup pasta cooking water

½ cup minced mint

¼ cup minced parsley

DIRECTIONS

Heat the olive oil in a saute pan large enough to toss the pasta and stir in the zucchini; cook on low heat until the zucchini is creamy looking. On low heat, stir in the cream and combine mixture well. Season with salt and pepper.

Cook the pasta in 2 quarts of boiling salted water until al dente. Reserve ½ cup of the pasta cooking water and set aside. Add the pasta to the pan with the sauce and stir well.

In a small bowl, whisk the cheese with enough of the reserved pasta water until it is well blended; stir into pan with the pasta and mix over low heat until everything is hot. Off the heat, stir in the mint and parsley; correct seasoning if needed and serve. Serves 4

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