All the inspiration from the recipe came from an Instagram post of Bobby Flay. He was describing the beautiful plate of pasta he’d be eating with his family if he was in the Amalfi Coast, Italy. All these strong and delicious flavors are very typical of that area in Italy and got my attention instantly. After searching the internet, I couldn’t find this recipe of his posted anywhere. So, I decided to recreate it myself! Hopefully I did it correctly, Bobby! If you like anchovies, you will love this recipe, so give it a try!

Ingredients:

• 2-4 zucchini, sliced into thin rounds

• Olive oil

• Salt

• Black pepper

• 1- 2oz can of flat anchovy fillets, crushed

• 1 lemon, zest

• 1 cup freshly grated pecorino or parmesan

• ½ lb. to 1 lb. spaghetti

• Reserved pasta water

• ½ stick of butter

• 2 cloves of garlic, smashed

• 1-2 tsp calabrian chili

• Fresh basil leaves

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 450 if using the oven to “fry” the zucchini, otherwise, skip the oven preheating. 

1. Clean and carefully slice the zucchini. Use a mandoline or a sharp knife to cut thin, even round. Lay round out on a cutting board, sprinkle with salt and set aside to sit for about 10 minutes, then use a paper towel to pat the zucchini rounds dry. 

2. In the meantime, get ready to fry, you have two choices: 1- fry until crisp in a large pan on the stove with some olive oil. When crisp and golden, remove from oil, transfer onto a paper towel on a plate, set aside until ready to use. OR option 2- get 2 large cookie sheets and drizzle olive oil into a very thin layer to coat the entire bottom on each of the sheets. Place zucchini rounds on the sheet in a thin layer, give a little drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of ground black pepper. Bake until golden for about 20-30 minutes, depending on how cooked you’d like them.

3. In the meantime, get ready to start everything for the pasta. Heat a pot of water to cook the pasta until very al dente. Don’t overcook the pasta. It should have a bite, it will finish cooking in the saute pan.

4. On another burner, heat a large pan over low heat. Add the calabrian chili, garlic and anchovies. You can use the back of a fork to crush the anchovies. Saute these three ingredients until the garlic sweat and it all becomes fragrant. Don’t burn the garlic.

5. Add the fried or baked zucchini and a cup of the starchy pasta water. Let it come to boil over medium-low heat. Then add the butter, a sprinkle of salt and pepper, stir. Once it emulsifies and becomes creamy, fold in the grated cheese, torn basil leaves and lemon zest. It should have a sauce like texture. Toss spaghetti into the pan and continue to mix until coated, then transfer into a large serving bowl. Garnish with more cheese and fresh basil. Serve and eat immediately.

We’d love to see your finished product! Post your picture on Instagram, tag us @danimade.kitchen and hashtag it #danimade