no. 159: zucchini pastina!

Plus, my new favorite VINEGAR!

Last weekend, I went camping with some pals for the 4th in Sequoia. We swam in a idyllic little creek at the base of a waterfall and it was both physically and spiritually cleansing.

We brought my Gozney Roccbox out with us which meant we were cranking a little DIY pizza night. Karlee also made some seafood boil packets, Katie whipped up some French toast, and there were obviously lots of burgers and dogs to be had. Cooking in the outdoors, man. You really can’t beat it.

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Gonna share a few products I’m loving right now before we get into this week’s recipe…

Salmon Hair Clip

I have a fun trip at the end of this month, and it felt very important that I have this specific accessory. Any ideas where I’m headed?!

Naturally Fermented Persimmon Vinegar

This brand sent me a bottle, and OMG it’s so tasty. It has been blessing all of my salad dressings lately. I never have nice vinegars at home, and I have to say, it’s quite a luxury. It’s super bright and zingy with a subtle touch of fruity sweetness. Making salad dressing is easy when the components are tasty to begin with, ya know??

Old Navy Snug Crop T-Shirt

The t-shirt that I wear in all my videos (and also every day of my life) is now available in STRIPES and RAGLAN. Let’s just say I did what I had to do.

Free People Barrel Jeans

I love these jeans so much that I bought another pair in this off white color that is listed as “milk,” which reminds me of that song where Ludacris is like “ALL WHITE JEANS BODY LOOKING LIKE MIIIIILK.” If you see me in these jeans, please greet me as such.

Zucchini Pastina

Serves 4-6

Active time: 25 minutes

Total time: 45 minutes

One thing about me is that I LOVE jammy zucchini. Raw zucchini? Predictable, lifeless, weird sounding texture, all around blah. Grated zucchini cooked down in butter, aromatics, and a bunch of salt? Interesting, complex, comforting, and DELICIOUS.

We ate a lot of zucchini in the summer months when I was growing up because my dad tended to a small backyard garden that would miraculously churn out loads and loads of summer squash from the fertile Long Island soil.

I am sad to report that none of that harvested zucchini was ever turned into zucchini pastina (BOO!). My dad would usually grill it alongside grilled chicken and I pretty much ate that for dinner every night for 15 years straight. And look, I turned out perfect!

It was only until adulthood that I realized just how much I love some good ol’ grated, jammy zucchini. I cooked Smitten Kitchen’s grated zucchini pasta for the first time a few years ago, and it was truly a revelatory experience. Good things happen when you put a squash to your box grater.

I wanted to do a summery pasta dish this week, and one shape I have yet to bring to this newsletter is PASTINA (acini de pepe). I love pastina because you can cook it like risotto, and you can choose your own adventure in terms of how brothy you want your dish to be.

I do enjoy a nourishing summer soup moment, and while I wouldn’t necessarily classify this dish as a full-on soup, I intentionally kept it on the brothier side of life because that’s how I like it. If you want this to eat as more of a creamy, risotto-like dish, use less liquid. Do you, baby.

Toasting the pastina in the skillet before adding the liquid is a certified pro move, if I do say so myself. It adds a subtly, nutty dimension to the dish that is pretty friggin’ DANK.

Zucchini Pastina

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• 4 medium zucchini, grated on the large holes of a box grater

• Kosher salt, to taste

• 4 cups chicken or vegetable broth (or water)

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter

• 1 medium shallot, finely minced

• 4 garlic cloves, finely minced

• 1 cup pastina (acini de pepe)

• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

• ¾ cup freshly grated Parmesan (about 3 ounces), plus more for garnish

• 1 cup freshly torn basil leaves

• 1 lemon, zested and juiced

• Mascarpone cheese, for serving (optional)

• Extra virgin olive oil, for drizzling

1. Place zucchini in a colander and sprinkle generously with salt. Let sit in the sink for at least 15 minutes to drain off liquid. Place zucchini in a clean dish towel and wring out as much liquid as possible.

2. Place broth or water in a small skillet and keep warm over low heat.

3. In a large skillet over medium heat, melt butter. Add shallot and cook until softened and translucent, 4 minutes (if you notice any browning, turn down the heat). Add garlic and cook until fragrant, 1 minute.

4. Add zucchini and cook until soft and jammy, 8-10 minutes (if you notice any browning, turn down the heat). Push the zucchini over to one side of the skillet and add pastina to the empty part of the skillet. Cook until lightly browned and fragrant, mixing occasionally, 2 minutes.

5. Mix together the toasted pastina and zucchini mixture. Gradually ladle in the broth, working a little at a time, allowing the pasta to absorb the liquid. Continue to ladle in broth and stir the mixture as the pasta cooks until the pasta is fully cooked and no longer has any bite, 8-10 minutes. If you use all of the liquid and the pasta isn’t quite done, add in a few extra splashes of lukewarm water and keep stirring until pasta is done. The mixture should still be runny and brothy.

6. Remove from heat and add cheese, basil, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Mix to combine. Add extra liquid to achieve desired brothines. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

7. Divide into shallow bowls and top with mascarpone, extra virgin olive oil, and more Parm. Serve immediately.