I love the look of this pasta blend…..
Isn’t everyone looking for quick recipes now that summer is here (may not be summer where you live but to me May in Texas is summer). Who has time to cook anyway? (Honestly, I still enjoy it.) I’m probably the only person that looks for hard recipe with lots of ingredients. This isn’t one of those and you can do it with or without the carrots and zucchini. If you want all pasta go for it.
I love Giada De Liuentiis’ shows on Food Network and when I saw this recipe in my old issue of Food and Wine I knew I was going to have to try it with a different twist for the pasta part of this dish. I would love to be part of that Italian family when they get together for their meals and it’s always so interesting to hear about her family stories. And this dish deserves a four finger kiss and a big “mama mia”. (Don’t know what that means but I picture them doing this when they like something.)
So my first instinct with this recipe was to use a little whole wheat pasta for texture and then grab my handy little julienne tool (or mandolin) and make spaghetti with zucchini and carrots. Those colors are beautiful together. Spaghetti squash could be used but spaghetti squash, to me, doesn’t have enough texture. (I decided to use a quinoa pasta instead of the whole wheat pasta.)
BLAST FROM THE PAST: Chocolate Malted Ice Cream would be a great ice cream recipe to start the summer with. Two of my favorite taste – malt and chocolate.
Use a julienne tool or a mandoline to make your zucchini and carrot spaghetti.
Mix the olive oil, lemon zest, lemon juice and Parmesan cheese together for the sauce. (*See note below.)
Put a small amount of oil in a skillet and fry the drained, dried capers until crispy. Set aside for garnish.
After you have sautéed the shrimp, add in the “pastas”, basil and the sauce. Toss to combine all the sauce.
- Vegetable oil for frying
- 1/4 c. capers, drained, rinsed and patted dry
- 1/4 lb. whole wheat spaghetti (I used a gluten free pasta)
- 2 large carrots
- 1 large zucchini
- 2/3 c. olive oil, plus 2 Tbsp.
- 1 c. freshly grated Parmigiano cheese
- 1 Tbsp. finely grated lemon zest
- 1/2 c. fresh lemon juice (from 3 lemons)
- 1 lb. large shrimp, shelled and deveined
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/2 c. chopped basil, plus more for garnish.
- Using either a julienne tool or a mandolin that will julienne, cut your carrots and zucchini lengthwise making long "spaghetti like" pieces. Set aside.
- In a skillet, heat 1/4" of oil until shimmering. Add the capers and fry over medium high heat, stirring, until browned and crisp, 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the capers to paper towels to drain.
- In a saucepan of salted boiling water, cook the spaghetti until al dente. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking water.
- Put the julienned carrots in microwave proof bowl and microwave for 3-4 minutes. Remove from microwave and heatIn 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, sauté the julienned carrot first, cooking about 2 minutes, then add in the julienned zucchini and cooking another 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
- Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk 2/3 c of the olive oil with the grated cheese, lemon zest and lemon juice.
- In a very large skillet, heat one tablespoon of the olive oil until shimmering. Season the shrimp with salt and pepper. Add to the skillet and cook over medium high heat, turning once until just opaque, 4 minutes. Reduce thereat to medium and add the pasta, lemon sauce, half of the reserved pasta water and the 1/2 c. of basil. Cook, tossing until the pasta and shrimp are coated, 2 mites, adding more of the pasta water if the spaghetti and vegetables are dry. Transfer to shallow bowls, garnish with basil and fried capers and serve.
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