Pasta con zucca, salvia, e mozzarella
I found this great recipe book in my local bargain basement bookshop, the thing I really like about it is that the recipes are regional and authentically Italian: not just the standard dishes found in every Italian restaurant! The measurements used are mine, as the recipe book uses ounces….
Ursula Ferrigno’s Trattoria: A passion for Italian Food
I have been contemplating using ricotta rather than mozzarella & butter, but my friends say it was perfect as is, so don’t meddle with it!
Serves 4
Olive oil
~ 600g pumpkin
1 bag of mozzarella in brine (220g I think?), drained & diced
30-40g butter (i.e. a lump a little bigger than the 25g marking on your pack)
2 garlic cloves, peeled & crushed
12 fresh sage leaves, plus extra to serve
juice & zest of 1 lemon
400g pasta (conchiglie or orichette, as per below)
grated parmesan
Put the mozzarella, butter, garlic, sage, lemon zest & juice, salt & pepper into a food processor & blend to a coarse paste. Make into a roll in cling flim & wrap with alfoil & chill.
Chop the pumpkin into small pieces (I leave the skin on, but it’s up to you!) season with salt & pepper, coat in olive oil & roast until tender & golden-brown – I use the vegetable roasting function on my combination microwave oven which is very quick, easy & tastes just as good as pure oven roasting.
Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil, cook the pasta according to the manufacturer’s instructions, or if you’ve made the pasta yourself until it rises to the top – usually 3 mins. Drain well.
Add the pumpkin to the drained pasta and slice in the mozzarella roll (crumbly texture), toss until the cheese has melted and it’s well mixed and divide the mix between 4 bowls, topped with parmesan and the reserved sage.