Pasta With Zucchini alla Nerano - Revisited By Me

A simple pasta with sautéed zucchini with good onion is already enough to make a happy day, especially if it is one of the favorite dishes of the daughters. This Sunday, however, I wanted to challenge myself with one of the typical dishes of the Amalfi Coast and that is Pasta with Zucchini alla Nerano. A traditional dish, a very tasty dish, but which I wanted to revisit, giving it a greater boost, giving it a new look halfway between a pasta with Zucchini Cream and a Genovese Pesto.

There are few tips that I can give you for this recipe, but certainly the most important one is the usual one, that is to use excellent raw materials, starting with a Gragnano DOP pasta, possibly small Zucchini with the flower at KM0, of the excellent Extra Virgin Olive Oil and good Parmesan (or Grana Padano) PDO aged at least 24 months. To finish the dish, you will need Provolone del Monaco DOP (a typical Campania cheese), but alternatively, use a soft cheese with a good flavor, but not too strong. In pasta alla Nerano, the courgettes are strictly fried, but I, also to lighten the dish a little, cut them into small pieces and toss them in a pan with a nice onion.

350 gr of Artisan Fusilli di Gragnano DOP

Extra virgin olive oil to taste

Salt and Pepper To Taste

Finely chop the onion and put it in a pan with a little extra virgin olive oil and half a ladle of water. Meanwhile Wash and cut the Zucchini. When the onion is golden, add the onions and raise the heat. Salt and mix often. When needed, add a little water and cook the courgettes (they must remain intact, crunchy, but must not be undone). Meanwhile, put a saucepan with plenty of water for cooking the pasta.

Put 8 of the 10 basil leaves, mint leaves, walnuts and Parmesan in a blender and run the blender until you get a flavored granular grated cheese. Put it aside because it will then serve as a "topping" to complete the dish.

When they are cooked, in the same mixer, add the courgettes, a little extra virgin olive oil, the remaining basil leaves, the pine nuts and some walnuts that you will have left. Run the mixer until you get a smooth cream. We will need this cream to dress the pasta. Season with salt while tasting.

When the water boils, add salt and add the pasta and cook it, leaving it al dente (about 2 minutes less than the cooking indicated on the package).

Drain the pasta and place it in a large pan with about 2 tablespoons of Zucchini Cream per person and half a ladle of cooking water. Sauté for about a minute adding some freshly ground pepper if you like.

Serve the pasta, adding to each portion 2 teaspoons of flavored Parmesan previously prepared and for garnish or a leaf of Basil or Mint, a Walnut, the Provolone del Monaco cut into thin strips (help yourself with a specific grater or a potato peeler). a drizzle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil and, for those who like it, a little freshly ground pepper.