AO’S SUMMER PASTA

In the Kitchen
Written By Kennedy Smith

This is the perfect recipe to keep in your back pocket for a late-summer evening. Serve it straight from the skillet with an extra shower of Parmesan and a simple green salad on the side. A chilled glass of white wine wouldn't hurt, either.

Serves: 4–6
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 25 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 1 pint cherry or Sungold tomatoes, halved

  • 2 cloves garlic, minced

  • 2 medium zucchinis, one shaved into ribbons and one cut into circles

  • 1 can white beans, drained and rinsed

  • ½ cup frozen chopped spinach, or ½ cup chopped kale

  • 1 box spaghetti

  • 4 tablespoons butter

  • Olive oil

  • Grated Parmesan

  • Salt

  • Freshly ground black pepper

directions:

1. Start with the tomatoes.
Heat a generous drizzle of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the minced garlic and sauté for about two minutes, until fragrant but not browned. Add the halved tomatoes and let them cook, stirring occasionally, as they begin to soften and release their juices.

2. Get the pasta going.
While the tomatoes cook, bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil. Add the spaghetti and cook it 2–4 minutes less than the package instructions suggest. The pasta will finish cooking in the skillet, where it will absorb all those flavorful juices. Before draining, reserve plenty of pasta water.

3. Build the sauce.
After about five minutes, use the back of a spoon to gently press down on a few of the tomatoes, helping them release even more of their juices. Once the tomatoes begin to look saucy, add the zucchini and stir to combine.

Add about two tablespoons of reserved pasta water and one tablespoon of butter. Continue cooking until the zucchini begins to soften and everything starts to take on a silky, sauce-like consistency.

4. Add the beans.
Stir in the drained white beans, followed by another tablespoon of butter. Add another tablespoon or two of pasta water and toss everything together, letting the beans get coated in the tomato-zucchini sauce.

5. Finish with the greens.
Add the spinach or kale and cook over medium to medium-low heat for 3–4 minutes, until the greens are softened. If you're using frozen spinach, make sure it has completely thawed and warmed through.

6. Bring it all together.
Add the undercooked spaghetti directly to the skillet, along with a few more tablespoons of pasta water and the final tablespoon of butter. Toss everything together until the pasta is glossy and coated in sauce.

Finish generously with grated Parmesan, salt, and freshly cracked black pepper. Add another splash of pasta water if needed—the goal is a silky sauce that clings to every strand of spaghetti.

Kennedy Smith
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