The traditional pasta dish called aglio olio (garlic and oil) gets a fresh twist with fresh and dried tomatoes, lots of parsley and a sprinkling of toasted nuts. It's a perfect summer pasta dish, but ou can enjoy it all year round.
Serves: 8
- ¼ cup crushed walnuts or toasted pine nuts
- 1 pound spaghetti, preferably whole grain, broken in half
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- 8 cloves garlic, finely minced
- 1 pound ripe, flavorful tomatoes, finely chopped
- 1 small zucchini, finely diced
- ⅓ cup thinly sliced sun-dried tomatoes, to taste
- Thinly sliced fresh basil, as desired
- Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- Dried hot red pepper flakes to taste
- Raw Vegan Parmesan-Style Cheeze, optional
Toast the walnuts or pine nuts in a small, dry skillet, tossing frequently, until golden. Remove from heat and set aside.
Cook the spaghetti in plenty of rapidly simmering water until al dente. Drain and transfer to a serving bowl.
Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a medium skillet. Add the garlic and sauté over low heat, stirring frequently, until golden. Add the fresh and dried tomatoes, and the zucchini, and cook for 2 minutes or so, just until the fresh tomatoes soften a bit.
In a large serving bowl, combine the cooked spaghetti with the garlic and tomato mixture, followed by the parsley and basil. Add the toasted nuts and remaining olive oil. Toss together.
Season to taste salt, pepper, and dried hot red pepper flakes. Serve at once, or let stand and serve at room temperature. Pass around the Raw Vegan Parmesan-Style Cheez, if desired.
- Here are more lighter seasonal vegan pasta recipes.
Ruchama says
Is there a substitute for pine nuts. They are extremely expensive and have been for quite a while. Even more important, some pine nuts are causing unpleasant reactions in consumers' mouths.' This passed from anecdotal to significant and Trader Joe's actually posted a notice about these occurrences.
Nava says
Ruchama, you're right about that, and so I amended the recipe with options for walnuts or almonds. This recipe is adapted from one of my earlier books, in the era when pine nuts were less expensive. Good to know about the allergic reactions, too.
Ruchama says
Thanks. By the way, we loved the golden vegan challah made with butternut squash. We made it several times over the Sukkot holiday. In the process, I found that piercing the squash 6 or 8 times about l/2 inch deep and baking it until it softens (at about 350-375) and the skin starts to turn dark and pucker, then cooling is the easiest way to get the chunks to puree. (Except of course paying the exorbitant price for prepared chunks.) Not only does the baking make peeling and seeding easier, it results in a slightly sweeter and much deeper gold color in the finished product. Your quinoa/olives/dried apricot was a huge success as well. In fact, as I tell my guests, you've never led me astray.
Ruchama