courgette and lemon fettucelle

thanks to generous friends we’ve had an abundance of courgette garden-bounty to work our way through. courgettes are not something i buy with much regularity so thinking of ways to eat them, on a weekly basis has been a good incentive to be a bit more creative than the usual roasting or cutting into strips for a salad.

this pasta dish is very quick and easy and in my case was perfect on a day when the kitchen was almost bare, home to a lonely courgette and a couple of lemons. you know it’s time to shop when that’s all the fresh vegetables and fruit you have to hand!

when making this i didn’t bother squeezing out the excess liquid from the courgettes (there’s bound to be nutrients worth having in there!), but you could if you wanted, which would allow you to add some lemon juice as well as zest to the recipe.

this dish is my contribution to presto pasta nights, as hosted by ruth at once upon a feast.

courgette and lemon fettucelle (serves 2)

fetucelle for two

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 small clove garlic, finely chopped

1 courgette (or 2 small ones),

grated zest of half a lemon

2 tablespoons parmesan, grated

1 tablespoon fresh basil, roughly chopped

salt & pepper

cook the fettucelle.

meanwhile heat the olive oil and cook the garlic over a low heat until it starts to turn golden. add the grated courgette and lemon zest, mix well and turn the heat off, leaving the flavours to infuse.

when the pasta is ready, drain it and mix with the courgette. add the parmesan and basil, seasoning to taste. serve with extra parmesan.