Pasta e Zucchine

I've got spring fever so here's my first spring recipe for you. It's so super simple and if full of flavor! It's healthy and in no way heavy on the stomach. It's perfect as a primo you plan to eat with a light second dish such as grilled chicken or fish.

Pasta e Zucchine couldn't be simpler to prepare.  Here are the very few ingredients you'll need:

3 large zucchini
400g pasta
1 handful of fresh basil leaves
1 handful of parsley
2 cloves of garlic
Extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt
80g of Parmesan cheese (the real kind really is much better than the powder... for all of you not living in Italy)
ground black pepper

optional for alternatives:
cream cheese (Philadelphia)
Pancetta affumicata a cubetti
speck a cubetti
pesto

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First slice the zucchini. Then get your water ready and bring it to the boil for the pasta. In a large frying pan heat up some olive oil and roast the garlic in the oil until it's blond. Throw int he zucchini slices and cook. In the meantime, start cooking your pasta according to the package instructions or until al-dente. Make sure you have salted the water! When your zucchini are almost cooked, add 2 tablespoons of the water from the pasta to the fry pan, remove the garlic and add some chopped parsley and basil. Drain your pasta and throw it into the fry pan along with some grated parmesan cheese and pepper to taste.  Serve hot!

Some alternatives for those of you who want more flavor:

• Meat lover? As your garlic is cooking cook up some pancetta or speck cut into cubetti but if you do, lay off on the salt you add to the water and to the dish at the end of cooking.
• Love basil? Add a spoonful of pesto to the frying pan when you're towards the end of cooking, just as you add in the cooking water. It will add a nice kick but not cover the flavor of the zucchini.
• Want a more creamy consistency? Add one tablespoon of cream cheese to your sauce when you're almost done and the zucchini are cooked. 

Buon Appetito!