Careless Cooking

I have been working full time for about six weeks now and I have yet to fully adjust to the lifestyle. After living on my own for the last five years, it is different to come home after a day of work and a class at M/Body Rochester to my roomies (parents) dinner schedule. My mom has been taking over the responsibility of cooking, until tonight. I finally put aside some time to cook for myself and @madeleinel0uise with the help of my sous chef, Gigi.

I was "pin-spired" (yes, apparently that is a real term now,) by a summer pasta dish posted by the New York Times. Madeleine and I purchased all of the necessary ingredients that the recipe called for over at our favorite one-stop grocery shop, Wegmans. As I began prepping, I realized how lazy I felt when it came to measuring and how little guests were actually attending our dinner party. The dinner did not come out as the recipe instructed, but it was still delicious.

Here is the original recipe:

Ingredients

-Extra-virgin olive oil

-1 small onion, finely diced

-2 pounds zucchini, sliced into 1/4-inch-thick pieces (for larger zucchini, cut in half lengthwise before slicing)

-Salt and pepper

-2 garlic cloves, minced, or 2 tablespoons chopped green garlic

-1 ounce basil, about 2 cups loose leaves

-1 pound ziti or other dry pasta8 ounces ricotta, about 1 cup (see recipe)

-Pinch of crushed red pepper

-Zest of 1 lemon

-2 ounces grated Parmesan, pecorino or a mixture, about 1 cup, plus more for serving

Steps

1. Put a pot of water on to boil. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, cook the onions in 3 tablespoons olive oil until softened, 5 to 8 minutes. Reduce heat as necessary to keep onions from browning. Add zucchini, season generously with salt and pepper, and continue cooking, stirring occasionally until rather soft, about 10 minutes. Turn off heat.

2. Meanwhile, use a mortar and pestle to pound garlic, basil and a little salt into a rough paste (or use a mini food processor). Stir in 3 tablespoons olive oil.

3. Salt the pasta water well and put in the pasta, stirring. Boil per package instructions but make sure to keep pasta quite al dente. Drain pasta, reserving 1 cup of cooking water.

4. Add cooked pasta to zucchini in skillet and turn heat to medium-high. Add 1/2 cup cooking water, then the ricotta, crushed red pepper and lemon zest, stirring to distribute. Check seasoning and adjust. Cook for 1 minute more. Mixture should look creamy. Add a little more pasta water if necessary. Add the basil paste and half the grated cheese and quickly stir to incorporate. Spoon pasta into warm soup plates and sprinkle with additional cheese. Serve immediately.

Here is how ours turned out (mind you we added some chicken):