Pasta Salad with Zucchini, Sizzled Scallion and Parmesan
Serves 4
Recipe adapted from www.alisoneroman.com
Pasta Salad can taste a little boring, a little heavy, at times. Here, traditional mayo based dressing is swapped with briny capers, bright lemon and fresh herbs. The addition of garden fresh zucchini, plus umami from walnuts and Parmigiano Reggiano, makes this a satisfying and memorable pasta salad to make again and again. Feel free to leave out the pasta altogether and increase the zucchini to turn this into a lovely vegetable side.
Ingredients
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
- ½ cup walnut pieces
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 bunches scallions
- Crushed red pepper flakes, to taste (optional)
- 1 pound (about 2 medium) zucchini, thinly sliced
- 3-4 oz drained capers
- 8 oz rigatoni, or other short, tubular pasta shape
- 2-3 garlic cloves, finely grated, or 2 rehydrated Maranatha Farm Garlic Coins
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 2-3 ounces Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino Romano cheese, coarsely chopped
- 1 cup fresh, leafy herbs, such as parsley, cilantro, dill and/or mint
Method
Heat 1/4 cup oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add walnuts and fry until deeply golden brown, smelling almost like popcorn, 2–3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove nuts (leaving oil behind) and transfer to a small bowl; season with salt and set aside.
Thinly slice about 1/3 of the scallions and set aside. Coarsely chop the remaining scallions (light and white green parts) and add to the skillet with oil. Season with salt and pepper and cook over medium-high heat until they're lightly browned at the edges and completely tender, bordering on "melty," 8–10 minutes. Add crushed red pepper flakes if using, then add half the zucchini.
Season zucchini with salt and pepper and let it cook down until tender and translucent, 10–15 minutes. This time will vary depending on the zucchini - larger squash has more water and will take longer to get to that melty translucent stage, but just stir or shake your skillet occasionally, taste one every now and then, and be patient. Once it's there, add the remaining zucchini (you should have more space in your skillet now) and season again with salt and pepper. Add capers and cook zucchini until it's wilted and tender, but still has a little bite, another 5–8 minutes or so (you want some very soft, tender zucchini and some less so).
Meanwhile, cook pasta in a large pot of salted water until just past al dente (you aren't cooking it again, so it should be basically fully cooked without feeling mushy). Drain and rinse under cold water; set aside.
Transfer the zucchini mixture to a large mixing bowl and add garlic, the juice of 1 lemon, and remaining thinly sliced raw scallion; season everything with salt and pepper. Add pasta and gently toss to coat. Adjust seasonings, if needed.
Add half the parmesan, walnuts and herbs and toss to coat. Transfer to a serving bowl (you can also serve out of the bowl you just made it in) and top with remaining parmesan, nuts and herbs.