Fusilli with courgettes, basil and pine kernels

Taken from "VEG: simple, stylish and seasonal vegetarian cooking" by Catherine Mason (Pauntley Press, 2001, ISBN: 0-9534879-2-8, price £12.99)
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A late summer recipe, this looks best made with a mixture of small green and gold-skinned courgettes, but either alone is fine. If you're making it for a special meal use home-made pesto, but if it's just for a quick bite then good quality commercial pesto is perfectly acceptable. Fusilli (pasta spirals) are a good vehicle for pesto (plenty of surface area for the sauce to stick to), and unlike noodles or spaghetti which clump together in an amorphous mass, they stay separate enough to mix in easily with the courgettes. The roasted pine kernels, added at the very last moment so they stay crisp, provide textural contrast.

  • 15 g (½ oz) butter
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 500 g (1 lb) courgettes, sliced into 5mm (¼ inch) rounds
  • salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 150 g (5 oz) fusilli
  • about 90 g (3 oz) pesto sauce
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
  • 50 g (2 oz) roasted pine kernels
  • fresh grated Parmesan cheese to serve
  • whole sprigs of fresh basil for garnishing

Heat the butter and oil in a large, heavy frying pan, and fry the courgettes briskly, stirring or shaking the pan from time to time. The idea is to brown them on the outside, while still retaining some bite. Add half a teaspoon of salt. The courgettes should take no more than 10 minutes to cook, much less if they're tiny, so put the pasta on to be ready at the same time. If the courgettes seem likely to be cooked before the pasta is ready just whip them off the heat for a few minutes. If the pesto sauce is very thick, dilute it with a tablespoon or two of pasta cooking water.

Throw the chopped basil leaves in with the courgettes for the final minute or two of cooking time, and add a few grinds of pepper. Thoroughly drain the pasta, which should be al dente, and tip it into the pan with the courgettes. Pour on the pesto, add the pine kernels and a little Parmesan cheese. Stir well to amalgamate everything, and serve in pre-heated bowls, with extra Parmesan for those who want it. Garnish each portion with a sprig of basil.

SERVES 2

Recipe copyright © 2001 Catherine Mason | other sample recipes