creamy lemon zucchini pasta again

We have had an interest in creamy lemon pasta ever since that legendary lemon cream pasta in Capri when we were a young couple and did our June Amalfi coast tour of Amalfi, Positano and on the way back to Napoli, a day visit to Capri, usually mispronouced by most Americans (the accent should be on the first syllable, unlike the short pants with this same name). We had stayed ini a small hotel right in the main square of Amalfi following a very good suggestion by Roman friends and then did a day trip to Positano.

This recipe popped up in our Facebook feed in a fishing ad by Bon Appetit but locked behind a free trial subscription. We were paper subscribers for a quarter century and need to simplify our lives as we head towards our expiration date. So a Google search on the ":creamy lemon zucchini pasta" turned up what clearly seemed like the same recipe, buit whatever, we are going with it instead.

Zucchini are a favorite veggie in our cuisine. This was the hook that led us to experiment with this recipe. Served to the dr bob cooking team, it was voted a success. It has a strong lemon flavor so you have to be ready for that. We used fresh fettuccine from our local Wegman's supermarket. Pretty good choice. Only  9 oz of pastas but we are only 3 feeders, so we reduced the ingredients appropriately. No leftovers, so rightsized for 3.

ingredients

3 to 4 c freshly grated zucchini, before squeezing  [we used 4 medium sized zucchini for 9 oz pasta]

2 T unsalted butter

1 T olive oil

kosher salt and pepper

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 pound pasta [we adjuusted for 3/4 recipe, although our lead chef has problems with fractional recipe generation]

1/2 c heavy cream [we used half and half]

2 T freshly grated lemon zest

1/3 c finely grated parmigiano

1/2 c chopped fresh basil, plus more for topping

3 T chopped fresh chives

1/3 c shaved parmigiano

instructions

1. Freshly grate the zucchini. Place it in a large kitchen towel and squeeze out as much of the liquid as possible.
2. Heat the butter and olive oil in a large skillet or dutch oven over medium heat.
3. Add the zucchini with a big pinch of salt and pepper. Stir to toss. Cook, stirring over, until the zucchini melts down and becomes caramelized, about 20 to 25 minutes.
4. Stir in the garlic.
5. While the zucchini cooks, bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook the bucatini. When it�s finished, reserve 2 cups of the starchy pasta water.
6. Transfer the pasta to the pan with the zucchini - you can take it right from the pot and place it in the zucchini skillet.
7. Add 1 cup of the reserved water and the heavy cream.
8. Stir and toss until combined.
9. Stir in the lemon zest and the finely grated parmigiano
10.  Add another 1/2 cup of the starchy water, stirring to combine.
11. Add in the fresh basil and chives.
12. Taste and if needed, add in more salt, pepper or lemon zest or parmigiano.
13. Top the pasta with the shaved parmigiano and a bunch of fresh basil. Serve immediately!

notes

1. Bon Appetit recipe: creamy lemon zucchini pasta.
2. Earlier clearly identical recipe found online: creamy lemon zucchini bucatini.
3. Fun fact: over in Italy zucchini are called zucchine in the plural, they are feminine rather than masculine. Google AI explains why. The French and the Brits call them "courgettes",  Whatever they are calledl, they have an inteersting history:Wiki.
4. Fettuccini (US) get the same treatment: fettuccine (Italy).
5. We did another creamy zucchini recipe years ago: lemonzucchinipasta.htm.
6. Illustrations available.