A Summer Sunday Pasta Dinner

It’s a gloriously sunny, summer Sunday and I’m enjoying one of life’s simple pleasures…cooking pasta.  Now that I have embraced a whole-food, plant-based diet I often forego the heavy, meat laden “Sunday sauce” of my youth and opt for light, fresh sauces enhanced by local, seasonal produce.  Right now, there is nothing more local or seasonal than the snake squash (known as cucuzza in Sicilian dialect) growing in my own backyard.  Some of my earliest childhood memories are of my mom’s delicious tomato sauce studded with pieces of cucuzza, onion and basil and I love recreating those memories for my own children to enjoy.  

Cucuzza, a light-green squash resembling a baseball bat, is a summer treat that you may find at your local farmer’s market or produce store.  It has a very short season, so if you happen to see one snatch it up and allow yourself the pleasure of experimenting with a new vegetable.  

Preparing cucuzza squash is easy, but requires some prep.  To make it more manageable, cut it into sections and remove the tough outer skin using a vegetable peeler.  Cut the sections lengthwise and remove the cottony, seeded interior with a spoon and cut into cubes. 

Cucuzza is best complimented by onion so I prepare it in a light marinara sauce using a few thinly sliced onions, a few cloves of garlic and a LOT of basil.  Once the sauce is simmering I bring it to a boil, cover and reduce to a simmer.  The sauce is ready when the vegetable looses its’ opaqueness. 

In keeping with a healthier lifestyle I choose 100% whole grain pasta rather that it’s white, over-processed counterpart.  There are so many varieties of pasta these days to experiment with and enjoy including corn, rice, spelt and quinoa.  Each offers a unique taste and consistency, so with a little exploration you’ll be sure to find a new favorite to add to your pantry. 

As an Italian-American through and through I could never give up my pasta, and living a plant-based lifestyle means I don’t have to.  So many fad diets today tell you to give up carbs in order to loose weight but the results of these fads are unhealthy and fleeting. 

If my compromise is to enjoy pasta, but without the meat, I say it’s a fair deal that I will make over and over again.  Sitting around the dinner table this afternoon surrounded by my loved ones enjoying a hearty bowl of pasta with the heady scent of basil wafting around us like a warm hug is a pleasure I won’t soon forget or forsake.