Everyday Pasta by Giada Laurentiis (summer beach reads TXT) 📕

When the oil is hot, fry the ravioli in batches, turning occasionally, until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the fried ravioli to paper towels to drain.

Sprinkle the fried ravioli with Parmesan cheese and serve with a bowl of warmed marinara sauce for dipping.

Zucchini and Carrot a Scapece

6 servings

A scapece means pickled, and the longer the vegetables marinate in the red wine vinegar, the better they taste. My family used to make them in the winter when the veggies weren’t at their peak. These are super versatile; serve them alongside pasta, bread, fish, or meat or as the centerpiece of an antipasto platter.

6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

5 large zucchini (about 2 pounds), cut in ¼-inch rounds

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

¼ cup fresh basil leaves, chopped

¼ cup fresh mint leaves, chopped

10 medium carrots (about 1 pound), peeled and cut in ¼-inch rounds

¼ cup red wine vinegar

Heat 3 tablespoons of the oil in a large, heavy frying pan over medium-high heat. Working in batches, add the zucchini slices and fry until golden, about 2 minutes per side. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the fried zucchini to a baking dish. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper, then with half of the garlic, basil, and mint.

Add the remaining 3 tablespoons of oil to the frying pan. Add the carrots to the hot oil and sauté until golden, about 5 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to add the fried carrots to the dish with the zucchini. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper and the remaining garlic, basil, and mint. Drizzle the vinegar over the vegetable mixture and toss gently to coat. Cool to room temperature, then cover and marinate at room temperature for 8 hours, or overnight in the refrigerator. (Allow the vegetables to come to room temperature before serving.) Transfer the scapece to a platter and serve at room temperature.

Fried Zucchini

4 servings

In Naples, fried zucchini is a street food, and it was always my favorite component of Frito Misto (a dish of mixed fried foods) when I was a child. I’ve made it lighter by coating it in the Japanese bread crumbs called panko instead of regular bread crumbs, a method you could use equally well with sweet potato slices, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, peppers—really any vegetable you like.

1¾ cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1½ cups panko (Japanese bread crumbs)

¾ teaspoon salt

2 large eggs

3 medium zucchini, cut into ½-inch strips

Olive oil, for deep-frying

Stir 1½ cups of the Parmesan cheese, the panko, and salt together in a medium bowl to blend. Whisk the eggs in another medium bowl to break them up. Working in batches, dip the zucchini sticks in the eggs to coat them completely, allowing the excess egg to drip back into the bowl. Coat the zucchini in the panko mixture, patting to adhere and coat completely. Place the coated zucchini strips on a baking sheet.

Heat 2 inches of oil in a large frying pan over medium heat until a deep-fry thermometer registers 350°F. Working in batches, fry the zucchini sticks until they are golden brown, about 3 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the fried zucchini to paper towels and drain.

Arrange the fried zucchini on a platter. Sprinkle with the remaining ¼ cup of Parmesan cheese and serve.

Prosciutto-Wrapped Vegetables with Parmesan

4 to 6 servings

It’s time to reinvent the crudité platter, and I nominate these attractive little bundles of vegetables; they’re great with cocktails for entertaining as an alternative to a boring deli plate, but they are also a nice alternative to a salad with a pasta dinner. My friends request this often.

6 broccolini stalks

6 small cauliflower florets with stems

15 paper-thin slices prosciutto

½ fennel bulb, trimmed, cored, and thinly sliced lengthwise

½ orange bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut lengthwise into thin strips

½ red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut lengthwise into thin strips

2-ounce piece of Parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons Meyer lemon olive oil

Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Place a large bowl of ice water near the stove. Cook the broccolini in the boiling water for 1 minute, then use a slotted spoon to transfer it to the bowl of ice water. Let cool for 2 minutes, then drain on a towel and reserve. Cook the cauliflower in the boiling water for 3 minutes, then cool in the ice water and drain as for the broccolini.

Working with 1 slice at a time, cut the prosciutto slices in half lengthwise. Make a small bundle of fennel slices and wrap it with prosciutto, allowing the fennel to extend out the ends. Bundle together 2 strips each of orange and red bell peppers and wrap them with prosciutto in the same way. Wrap prosciutto strips around the stalks of broccolini and the stem ends of the cauliflower florets.

Using a vegetable peeler, shave the Parmesan cheese onto a large platter or serving plates; arrange the vegetable bundles over the cheese shavings. Drizzle the oil over the bundles.

2:

something on the side

One of the great things about many pasta dishes is that they are an all-in-one meal—starch, vegetables, and maybe some protein conveniently dished up at once. Sometimes, though, it’s nice to augment your pasta with a little something more: a salad to start or finish the meal or a quick vegetable side to complement a pasta dish that doesn’t feature many vegetables. I believe in always serving some kind of green when serving a pasta. It rounds out the meal and cleans the palate. Italians serve salad after the main course, but these can also be served before. These are some of my favorite dishes to serve with pasta and none of them takes more than a few minutes to put together. Most of the recipes in this chapter would work well as a first course for a more formal dinner, too. And when you’re serving a baked or cheesy