Courgette, Spinach & Lemon Casarecce

Published by

Jasmine

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Pasta can absolutely be cosy comfort food, but it can also be fresh and vibrant, so for today’s spring-themed recipe, we’re leaning into the latter interpretation…

INGREDIENTS

Vegetables:

Courgette

Spinach

Aromatics and flavour:

Shallot

Garlic

Unwaxed lemon (so we can use both the juice and the zest)

Pasta:

Casarecce (or any other similar pasta shape)

Dairy:

Pecorino (or a vegetarian Italian hard cheese)

Double cream

Toppings:

Fresh basil

Pine nuts

TIPS

There’s not much too this one; just don’t cook the basil and don’t overcook the courgette, because we still want it to have a bit of bite and freshness! I also recommend reserving some pasta water to help emulsify the sauce later on if you need a bit of extra creaminess.

Courgette, Spinach & Lemon Casarecce

  • Servings: 2-3
  • Difficulty: Easy
  • Print

A fragrant and vibrant pasta dish for spring

No special equipment or advance prep needed

Ingredients

  • 4 cloves of garlic (chopped, crushed or grated)
  • 1 shallot (finely sliced or chopped)
  • 1 courgette (halved and finely sliced into semi-circles)
  • 50g of spinach (roughly chopped)
  • 200g of Casarecce
  • 50g of Pecorino / Italian hard cheese (finely grated)
  • 70ml of double cream
  • 1 unwaxed lemon (juice and zest)
  • A few sprigs (c.2g) of fresh basil
  • 20g of pine nuts
  • 1 tbsp of olive oil
  • 1 tbsp of butter
  • Salt and pepper to taste


Directions

  1. Boil the kettle
  2. Pan fry the pine nuts over a medium heat in a large, wide-based pan for 5-7 minutes, stirring regularly until they’re golden, then remove from the pan and set them aside
  3. Melt the butter and olive oil together in the same pan
  4. In a second saucepan, bring the water to a rolling boil over a medium-high heat and salt generously – cook the casarecce until al dente (usually 10 minutes but use the pack instructions) and reserve up to 1 cup of the cooking water
  5. To the butter and olive oil, add the garlic and shallot, season with salt and pepper and sauté until fragrant (around 3 minutes), then add the lemon zest
  6. Add the lemon juice, courgette and spinach, stir and cook for a further 5-7 minutes until softened, season again as needed and turn off the heat
  7. Add 3/4s of the cheese (reserve some for topping) and the double cream
  8. Add the cooked pasta and a little of the pasta water, stir together and cook for a further 1-2 minutes until the pasta is creamy
  9. Serve topped with the fresh basil, toasted pine nuts and extra cheese

Let me know if you try this fresher, more zesty take on pasta and check out the video below!

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