Casareccia with zucchini
Make the most of glorious green zucchini with this family-pleasing pasta dish, with a salty-sweet edge.
Serves 4
500g baby zucchini
4 zucchini flowers
1 cup panko breadcrumbs
2 tbsp pine nuts
2 tbsp raisins
2 tbsp drained capers
½ cup olive oil extra virgin
2 cloves garlic peeled
500g casareccia (or fusilli)
handful fresh baby rocket leaves, washed and torn into pieces
salt for pasta and to taste
pepper to taste
Wash and cut the zucchini into thin slices, pat them dry with kitchen paper. Fry in extra virgin olive oil until browned on both sides and set onto kitchen paper to absorb excess oil.
Do the same with the zucchini flowers and set aside. In the same pan, cook the panko crumbs until golden, add the pine nuts and cook until coloured, then add the raisins and capers.
Heat some more olive oil in frying pan with the 2 garlic cloves, taking care not to burn the garlic. Remove and set aside.
Meanwhile, boil the pasta in plenty of lightly salted water until al dente and drain, but keep aside a large cup of the cooking water.
Puree half the fried zucchini slices with the fried garlic using a little of the reserved pasta water.
Add the zucchini puree, zucchini slices and flowers to the pan and then stir in the cooked pasta and add enough pasta water to make it creamy and loose.
If the dish appears too dry add some more of the saved pasta water. Continue to stir over a low heat for a minute.
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Season with a sprinkling of salt and pepper as required. Serve with the rocket leaves and fried breadcrumbs, pine nuts, raisins and capers.
This article first appeared in the February 2026 issue of SALIFE magazine.
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