I made the choice to make a special lasagna out of my love of rotisserie chicken and broccoli cheese soup.
| Prep Time: | 15 mins |
| Cook Time: | 35 mins |
| Total Time: | 50 mins |
| Servings: | 4 |
Ingredients
- 1 (8 ounce) package penne pasta
- 15 fresh zucchini blossoms
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 bunch fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 teaspoon saffron threads
- 2 tablespoons fine cornmeal
- 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
- salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add penne and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender yet firm to the bite, about 11 minutes. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of cooking water.
- Clean and rinse zucchini blossoms, removing the inner parts (stigma or anthers); coarsely chop the flowers.
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Cook and stir garlic in hot oil until it begins to brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in reserved pasta water, parsley, and saffron until combined. Add zucchini blossoms and simmer until tender, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle with cornmeal; stir constantly until thickened, about 5 minutes.
- Gently fold penne into zucchini blossom mixture and top with Parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 299 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 46 g |
| Cholesterol | 2 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 3 g |
| Protein | 9 g |
| Saturated Fat | 2 g |
| Sodium | 342 mg |
| Sugars | 2 g |
| Fat | 9 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
While this was very good, I can’t honestly say that the addition of the zucchini blossoms made it any more special. It was pretty, for sure, as well as fun and interesting to try. But given that zucchini blossoms in most instances would be difficult to come by, don’t hesitate to prepare this without them. If I hadn’t prepared this myself and had been blindfolded, I wouldn’t even have known they were in there. Still, a delicious dish nonetheless.
A fantastic pasta dish made like traditional pasta in Italy: simple and full of flavour. I made up the sauce while the pasta was cooking and the timing was right on for my bucatini. This dish is as beautiful as it is delicious. The colours are bursting as is the flavour. I think a key factor here is to use a smooth pasta, not rigata it really makes a difference. Thank you robwala for sharing this lovely recipe.