L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, JUNE 11, 2020 www.italoamericano.org 26 L'Italo-Americano LA BUONA TAVOLA RECIPES COOKING TIPS SEASONAL DISHES FRANK FARIELLO S p a g h e t t i a l l a Nerano, named after the beach town where it originated, could be the child your basic pasta and zucchini would have if it got married with a cacio e pepe. It's a delightful combination, with zesty provolone cheese adding considerable inter- est to the often bland veg- etable. With the current trendi- ness of cacio e pepe, I'm surprised this dish hasn't caught on. As popular as it might be in Italy, it seems more or less unknown in these parts. At least for the moment… Ingredients Serves 4-6 400g (14 oz) spaghetti 800g (1 and 1/2 lbs) zuc- chini, sliced into thin rounds 200g (7 oz) provolone cheese, grated (see Notes) 2 or 3 garlic cloves A few basil leaves Olive oil Salt and pepper Directions Fry the zucchini slices in oil (preferably olive oil) until they are lightly browned. Proceed in batch- es if your skillet isn't large enough to hold all the slices in a single layer. As they are done, lay the fried zucchini slices on paper towels to absorb the excess oil. Sprinkle lightly with salt. Bring a large pot of water to the boil, salt well, and throw in the spaghetti. Cook until very al dente. While the spaghetti is cooking, in a large skillet or sauté pan, sauté the garlic lightly in olive oil. Remove the garlic. When the pasta is done, drain it, but not too well. Add the zucchini rounds, then the pasta to the skillet and a ladleful of pasta water. (If you want, reserve some of the zucchini for garnish). Mix everything together vigorously for a minute or two. (The zucchini rounds are bound to break up, but that's normal). Then add the grated cheese and some more basil leaves, and continue mix- ing until the cheese has completely melted into a creamy sauce, adding more pasta water if need be to keep things flowing smoothly. Serve your spaghetti right away, topped with the remaining zucchini slices for garnish, along with, per- haps, a basil leaf or two. N o t e s o n S p a g h e t t i alla Nerano Given the similarities, the tips for making a good cacio e pepe apply here as well. The essential point: keep mixing the pasta until the cheese melts into a creamy sauce. Even if it seems to clump up at first, don't be discouraged, keep at it. Add pasta water as needed. Spaghetti alla Nerano is actually less tricky to get right than the Roman classic. Since you're mixing the pasta and cheese over heat, the magic should happen pretty quickly and consistently. And any excess water will evaporate. The heat should be gentle however, to avoid scorching the cheese. Another important thing to bear in mind: frying the Delicious spaghetti alla Nerano, with provolone and zucchini (Photo: Dreamstime) Provolone is one of the cheeses you can use for a perfect plate of spaghetti alla Nerano (Photo: Dreamstime) Spaghetti alla Nerano Continued to page 28

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