The basic process is this: gently cook your vegetables until they’re crisp tender, then toss with pasta, or rice, or leave them by themselves. Smother the veggies with herbs, heated only for a moment or two just to release their flavor. Then dress the dish – I went the luxurious route, with cream and cheese, but a drizzle of good olive oil and a sprinkling of salt would have an equally wonderful effect.

Garden: Spaghetti with Summer Squash and Tomatoes

Garden: Spaghetti with Summer Squash and Tomatoes

Garden: Spaghetti with Summer Squash and Tomatoes

Garden: Spaghetti with Summer Squash and Tomatoes

Creamy Spaghetti with Summer Squash and Tomatoes

Serves 4-6

  • 1 lb. spaghetti
  • 3 TBS butter
  • 2 small summer squash, thinly sliced
  • 6 cloves garlic, minced
  • 20-30 cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 1/3 c. packed fresh parsley, thinly sliced
  • 1/3 c. packed fresh basil, thinly sliced
  • 1/2 c. heavy cream
  • 1/3 – 1/2 c. packed grated parmesan
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
  • sea salt
  • black pepper
  1. Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil.
  2. Heat the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat until melted.  Add the sliced squash and cook until tender and beginning to turn golden brown, about 7-10 minutes, flipping with a spatula once or twice over this time period.  Add the minced garlic and cook for 2 minutes longer, until garlic is very fragrant but not browned.  Add cherry tomatoes and cook for 2 minutes more, stirring.
  3. Add the spaghetti to boiling water at about this point.  Cook according to package directions.  In an ideal world, you want the sauce to be ready as the same time as the pasta, but life doesn’t always work out like that.  If your pasta is done first, rinse with cold water or drizzle with olive oil to prevent it from sticking.
  4. Lower the heat on the sauce and cook vegetables for 2-3 more minutes, stirring.  Add cream, parsley, and basil to vegetables, and cook, simmering gently, for 2 minutes.  Turn off heat, and stir in lemon juice and parmesan cheese.  Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as necessary.
  5. If your spaghetti is just finishing, add a few TBS of the pasta cooking water to the sauce, then drain the spaghetti and immediately toss with the sauce.  If your spaghetti has been finished for a while, add as much of the spaghetti as will fit to the saucepan and heat over low heat for 2 minutes, tossing spaghetti with sauce.  When spaghetti is just heated, add it all back to the pot to mix thoroughly.  (The goal here is to get the sauce to adhere to the spaghetti and both to be hot when served).
  6. Serve hot with additional grated parmesan.

Garden: Spaghetti with Summer Squash and Tomatoes

Dining and Cooking