LINGUINE with BABY ZUCCHINI, CHERRY TOMATOES & BOTTARGA

INGREDIENTS
  • 6 oz. linguine pasta
  • 6 cherry tomatoes ,cut in half
  • 3 baby zucchini or 1 regular zucchini
  • 1 tablespoon bottarga cured dried mullet
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 pinch peperoncino (optional)
  • 1 tablespoon chives for garnishing

INSTRUCTIONS
  1. Put water for pasta to boil. Cook pasta according to the directions on the package.
  2. Wash, dry and cut baby zucchini approximatelly ¼ inch lengthwise and then into thin strips.
  3. If you zucchini have flowers attached to them, use those as well. Cut off the flower from zucchini, then cut off about ½ inch into the flower. This way it’ll be easier to remove the stamen. It will simply fallout from the cut side of the flower. Cut zucchini blossoms in strips as well.
  4. In a large skillet pan add a few tablespoons of olive oil and garlic clove crushed with a flat knife. Stir for two minutes until olive oil is well infused with garlic. Be careful not to burn the garlic as it will give a bitter taste to the sauce.
  5. Add zucchini strips. Let them sizzle for a few minutes. Add cherry tomatoes cut in half. If you have any zucchini blossoms, add them at the very end, once cherry tomatoes have softened.
  6. By this time your linguine should be cooked perfectly ‘al dente’. Drain them and save some pasta cooking liquid.
  7. Toss everything around in the skillet for a mere minute to get pasta flavored with zucchini sauce. Add grated bottarga fish roe. If linguine start to feel a bit dry add a few drops of olive oil and some cooking liquid from pasta.
  8. Garnish with dry or fresh chopped chives and a few pinches of remaining bottarga. Serve immediately.
    Lilian & Adam