What CAN YOU DO WITH....ZUCCHINI?

Sooo many things! The first thing that comes to my mind is...LOOVE (!) but, let's do as if we were real americans (=100% puritan ;P), and stay on the culinary side of life... Your aunt brought you a lot of zucchini from her garden, and you don't really know what to do with 'em? Impress all your friends with a great italian menu!

Pasta with creamy sauce made of zucchini, chick peas, curry and fried raw ham 

Zucchini boiled and then fried with cheese and raw ham

Zucchini and chick peas salad

Pasta with creamy sauce made of zucchini, chick peas, curry and fried raw ham 

Pasta with creamy sauce made of zucchini, chick peas, curry and fried raw ham 

Ingredients for 2 people:

- Pasta "shells" (200g), we call them "conchiglie"

- Zucchini (2)

- Cooked chick peas (half handful)

- Raw ham (4 strips)

- Fresh milk cream (70ml)

- Onion (1 small)

- Garlic (1 clove)

- Extra virgin olive oil

- Curry powder (1-2 tea spoons, as you wish)

- Salt

- Pepper

Put a pot of water for the pasta on medium-high heat. Cut the onion and the garlic into small pieces, put them in a pan and fry them together with a little extra virgin oil until the onion turns yellow (don't let it turn too dark 'cos it'd taste like sh..! It already happened to me, more than once...hehe). While the onion is frying cut also the raw ham and the zucchini in little pieces leaving half of one zucchini by side. First put the ham into the pan with the onion, let it fry a couple of minutes (until it looks crispy) and then add the zucchini and a couple of chick peas. Let it cook on medium heat for about 10 min.

Now put the half zucchini and the rest of the chick peas in a bowl and mix them together with a mixer until you get a cream. Add the cream to the pan. Finally add a pinch or two of salt, the curry powder and the fresh milk cream. Leave the sauce on medium-low heat for another 10 min. 

When the pasta water boils put the salt and the "conchiglie" into it.

When the pasta is ready (al dente, please!), trickle it and mix it with the sauce. At the end if you wish add a little bit of pepper. Ready, ENJOY!

Zucchini boiled and then fried with cheese and raw ham

This is super easy! Just put one ore more entire zucchini into boiling and salted water until they become soft. In a pan fry one slice of raw ham for each zucchini. When zucchini are ready take them out of the water, cut each zucchini in a half and put on each half one slice of cheese (swiss cheese or whatever kind you like) and one slice of fried raw ham. Now put the zucchini in the pan with a little olive oil and leave it on medium-high heat until the cheese melts. Ready to eat!

Zucchini boiled and then fried with cheese and raw ham

Zucchini and chick peas salad

Boil one or more zucchini in salted water until they get soft. When ready take them out of the water and cut them into wheels. Put them together with the cooked chick peas in a plate and season it with vinegar, extra virgin oil and salt. Reeeeeady and...so easy!

Zucchini and chick peas salad