This pasta with zucchini dish is made with only 5 ingredients (pasta, zucchini, olive oil, onion, and parmigiano reggiano), and made all in one pot! The zucchini gently simmers in a pan, then pasta is added and releases all its starches while cooking to make a creamy and tasty dish that any Italian nonna would approve of!
Whenever I would visit my nonna in Italy, she would always make one pot pasta dishes like this pasta with zucchini. She would also make pasta e ceci, pasta e fagioli, pasta e piselli...you get the idea.
It was like they were her secret weapon. When she didn't have tons of time, or wanted to make something from a traditional pasta dish, she would make one of these. It's from her that I learned to make them, but more importantly, appreciate them.
Italians are all about eating with the seasons, so nonna would make this dish when zucchini (or zucchine as you would call them in Italian) were in season. Which means that she would make it in the summer months (she would leave the heartier dishes like pasta e ceci and pasta e patate for the winter months). She loved to add lemon zest and basil at the end to give the whole dish some brightness and freshness.
Let's get cooking!
Recipe
One-Pot Italian Pasta with Zucchini
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon olive oil extra virgin
- ½ cup onion chopped into small dice
- 4 cups zucchini chopped into a medium dice
- 700 mL warm water approximate, see notes
- 200 grams small pasta like ditalini
- ¼ cup parmigiano reggiano grated
- 6 basil leaves medium size, optional
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest optional
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a large pan with high sides, add the olive oil over medium heat.
- Once the olive oil is warmed through, add in the onion. Cook until it's golden and fragrant, about 5 minutes.
- Add in the zucchini, mix it in with the onion and olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.
- Add about 400-500mL of water (just enough to cover the zucchini).
- Let the zucchini cook for about 7-10 minutes.
- Remove about 2 cups of zucchini into a measuring cup and blend with an immersion blender until completely blended.
- Add the blended zucchini back into the pan. Adjust for salt and pepper.
- Once the liquid comes back to a boil, add in the pasta.
- Cook the pasta. When the pasta starts drying out, add more warm water one ladle at a time. Continue this process until the pasta is cooked. Cook the pasta until it is done to your liking.
- Remove from heat, and add grated parmigiano reggiano, lemon zest and basil. Stir once more.
- Plate, top with more olive oil and parmigiano if desired. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
- I used water in this dish, but you could use vegetable stock as well
- Make sure to keep adding liquid (water or stock) to the pan as the pasta is cooking and it starts drying out (this is a process in Italian called risottare)
- To store and reheat: Place in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. To reheat, place in a saucepan on the stove and add some water, because it will most likely have dried out in the fridge.
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