Recipe: Pasta with Zucchini & Zucchini Flowers

Scroll down for the video.

It was the summer of 2020 (jump scare). And we went on a zucchini kick. It lasted well over a year. If you’ve been here since then, 1. grazie mille 2. sorry for all the zucchini.

Truthfully, we never stopped eating copious amounts of our favorite summer vegetable (technically a fruit, but hey).

But we did stop posting about it because it was getting out of hand.

We made this pasta with zucchini and zucchini flowers again the other day, and well, it’s time for zucchini to be front and center again. Keep scrolling to see how Lina, Giuseppe’s mom, makes this dish.

How to clean zucchini flowers (AKA squash blossoms)

Zucchini flowers are very fragile and go bad quite quickly, so only buy them a day or so ahead. And only clean them right before you make this recipe, otherwise they’ll wilt and become soggy.

Fill a bowl with water and gently submerge the flowers. Pick up one, we like to keep it submerged so the water keeps the petals open. Then reach inside and pinch off the stamen or pistil.

Technically, the stamen and pistil are edible. But if not cooked for long enough can be bitter. Therefore, we just remove them. Don’t worry if the flowers tear or break because they’re going to cook down in the sauce. Rinse them and place in a colander to drain.

Have questions?

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Recipe for Pasta con Zucchine e Fiore di Zucca

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp EXAU Lina extra virgin olive oil, plus some for finishing

• 3 - 4 garlic cloves, smashed or roughly chopped

• 1 spicy pepper, cut in half, optional

• 1 kg zucchini (5 medium zucchini), thinly sliced into half moons

• 4 zucchini flowers, roughly chopped, optional

• 2 sprigs fresh parsley, chopped

• 280 g dry linguine, spaghetti, or rigatoni

• 6 tbsp finely grated parmigiano reggiano

Instructions

1. Bring a large pot of pasta to a boil.

2. Heat a large pan on medium-low for 1 minute, then add the extra virgin olive oil, garlic, and spicy pepper. Cook until the garlic is golden, 1 - 2 minutes.

3. Add the zucchini and cook on high for 1 - 2 minutes. Add a splash of water to prevent sticking. Cover and cook for 10 minutes. Lower the heat to medium if the zucchini sticks too much.

4. Add the parsley and zucchini flowers. Crack the lid and continue cooking on medium for 10 minutes or until the zucchini has broken down into a sauce. Stir every few minutes, add splashes of water if needed and/or reduce heat.

5. Cook the pasta until 2 minutes before al dente and reserve 2 cups of pasta water.

6. Strain the pasta and add it to the zucchini, then turn the heat to high. Stir continuously. Add splashes of pasta water as the sauce thickens. Cook for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and plate immediately.

7. Finish each serving with parmigiano reggiano and an extra drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.

Get the oil

This recipe calls for the EXAU Lina extra virgin olive oil. Grab a bottle below.

Want more Zucchini recipes?

Try these:

• Pasta with Pancetta and Zucchini

• Lina’s Zucchini Fritters

A presto,

-Giuseppe & Skyler, Founders