I made this dish last October, which I'm sure is obvious with the pumpkin tablecloth and such. I didn't get around to posting it then and this week, over at I Heart Cooking Clubs the theme of the week is Go Green! -- so I figured this fit the bill. I love zucchini, feta, and pasta, and the mint was an intriguing addition, so I had to give this dish from Tessa Kiros' book, Apples for Jam, a try. Plus, how could I not when I had some fresh mint growing in my herb garden?
This is my herb picker, my sweet little four year old who is the only one home with me during the day this year, sniffle, sniffle. Hard to believe next year he will be in kindergarten and I will not have a little baking buddy :( Looks like we'll have to have cooking together time after school.
Looking at these just makes me smile. He is such a silly guy.
Tongue out for maximum mint picking concentration :) Okay, enough kid pictures, on to the recipe...
Angel Hair Pasta with Zucchini, Mint, and Feta
adapted from Tessa Kiros -- Apples for Jam
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 small zucchini, finely sliced, I doubled this to 4 and sliced them about 1/2 inch thick
2 cloves garlic, peeled and squashed a bit
salt
1/2 teaspoon dried mint, I used fresh -- about 20 leaves, chopped
3/4 cup feta cheese, I upped this to 1 cup
1 and 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
2/3 of 16 ounce package angel hair pasta / capellini -- I used the whole box since I upped the veggies and cheese
olive oil, to serve
grated parmesan cheese, to serve
Heat the olive oil in a large nonstick frying pan and add the zucchini and garlic.
Saute over quite high heat until the zucchini are cooked through and golden in places. If the garlic starts to burn, sit it on top of the zucchini.
Season very lightly with salt and remove from the heat. Toss in the mint, crushing it between your fingers, and add the feta and lemon juice to the pan.
Meanwhile, cook the pasta in boiling salted water, following the package instructions. Drain the pasta, not too thoroughly, and save a little cooking water. (I'd say about 1/2 cup) Toss the pasta directly into the zucchini pan, if it fits. If not, return it to its own pan and add the zucchini sauce.
Add 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil and toss quickly and thoroughly to mix it all through (add a little cooking water if it seems at all dry). Serve immediately with parmesan and an extra drizzle of olive oil, if you like.
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This was a nice simple lunch for my four year old and myself. It was very mildly flavored so if you like the flavors of zucchini and feta, you would probably like this. I remember having leftovers of this and they reheated fine in the microwave. Not a knock you down with flavor type of pasta, but it had a nice light and refreshing taste from the lemon juice and mint and was a yummy lunch for sure.