Vegetable Sauce with Zucchini, Carrots and Peas

Name: Vegetable Pasta Sauce with Zucchini, Carrots and Peas
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 35 min
Cuisine: Italian cuisine
Ingredients: Young zucchini 1; Carrot 1; Onion 1; Red bell pepper 1; Young green peas (shelled) 0.5 cup (75 g); Garlic 2-3 cloves; Hot pepper to taste; Olive oil 2 tbsp; Water 150 ml; Salt, black pepper to taste; Spaghetti (for 2 servings) for serving; Salt for the pasta water 7 g per 1 l of water; Basil a sprig, for garnish

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35 mins

For a tasty, filling breakfast we usually make pasta: it is quick and easy, and you can use everyday ingredients. What matters, you don’t even need to buy the sauce ingredients in advance. A simple vegetable sauce can be made from fresh produce or, out of season, from ready-made frozen mixes.

Early summer brings lots of young vegetables that you can buy close to home or pick in the garden: young green zucchini with seeds that haven’t formed yet, carrots and onions, green peas and so on. These vegetables stew or boil to doneness in just a few minutes, and they are especially good al dente.

Vegetable mixes also don’t need many spices. A little salt and fragrant herbs keep the pleasant vegetable flavor. What is special about sauces from young vegetables is that the time it takes for them to soften is much shorter than for “old” vegetables. Keep that in mind so they don’t cook down to mush.

A simple vegetable sauce is a great addition to Italian pasta. Because the cooking time is short, the sauce takes no longer than it takes the water to boil and the pasta to cook. When I cook the vegetables, I add them one after another, according to their cooking times. I puree some of the vegetables with a blender to make the base of the sauce, and add some closer to the end so they form more noticeable pieces.

First of all, young zucchini with glossy green skin and barely visible seeds. Be sure to use onion and carrot, which are tender and tasty when young. Peeled young green pea pods are a great addition to the sauce. Use garlic to flavor the olive oil, and sweet pepper for the firmer part of the sauce.

For a special flavor, fry the vegetables in olive oil. Carrot is firmer, so start with it. Then add the onion, and when it is soft, the diced zucchini. Add some of the green peas right before pouring in the liquid and starting to stew. Puree the cooked vegetables, leaving some visible pieces. Then heat the mass and add the remaining peas and finely chopped sweet pepper flesh.

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Ingredients

2 servings

For the sauce
Young zucchini 1
Carrot 1
Onion 1
Red bell pepper 1
Young green peas (shelled) 0.5 cup (75 g)
Garlic 2-3 cloves
Hot pepper to taste
Olive oil 2 tbsp
Water 150 ml
Salt, black pepper to taste
For serving
Spaghetti (for 2 servings) for serving
Salt for the pasta water 7 g per 1 l of water
Basil a sprig, for garnish

Step-by-step recipe

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Vegetables and flavored oil

Don’t use a lot of spices: the aroma and taste of young vegetables are what define this sauce. And always flavor the olive oil with garlic.
Choose young vegetables. In season, a vegetable sauce is easy to make from young vegetables; in winter it is perfectly fine to use frozen vegetable mixes with similar ingredients. If the zucchini have already started to form seeds, cut that part out, or the sauce will have hard bits in it.
Peel a few cloves of garlic and crush them with the flat of a knife.
Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a frying pan. Fry the garlic in the oil over medium heat, stirring, until fragrant. Never let the garlic burn. Then remove the cloves and discard them.
Peel the carrot and cut it into thick sticks.
Fry the carrot in the flavored oil for 2-3 mins over high heat. Meanwhile, peel the onion and cut it into large wedges.
Add the onion to the carrot and fry until the onion is soft. At this stage you can add a piece of fresh hot pepper to taste, finely chopped with a knife.
Wash the young zucchini and dry it well. Cut off the ends, then halve it lengthwise. If the seeds have formed, scoop them out with a regular spoon. Dice the zucchini.
Add the zucchini to the fried vegetables and fry for another 3-4 mins.
Add the young green peas. Keep a few peas aside to add to the sauce at the final stage.

Stewing and pureeing

Season the vegetables with ground black pepper and a little salt. Pour about 150 ml of water into the pan and bring to a boil.
Cover the pan and stew the vegetables over low heat for about 15 mins. By then the water will be almost completely absorbed, with just a little left. The vegetables may be only “almost” done, which is fine.
Transfer the cooked vegetables to a blender and puree them. A hand blender works too. Pour the vegetable puree back into the pan.
Peel the red bell pepper and chop it very finely. Add the pepper and all the remaining green peas. If the sauce is too thick, add 2-3 tbsp of water.
Simmer the vegetable sauce over low heat for 4-5 mins from when it starts to boil.

Pasta and serving

Meanwhile, cook spaghetti or another long pasta; noodle-type pasta works too. Cook dry Italian pasta in salted water: 7 g of salt per 1 l of water. The cooking time is on the package, and the manufacturer guarantees al dente in that time.
Drain the pasta in a colander, then put it on a plate.
Spoon the vegetable sauce on top and garnish the dish with a sprig of greens; basil is perfect.
Serve the spaghetti with the vegetable sauce right away, while it is hot. People often suggest sprinkling the dish with a little grated Parmesan, which is up to you.
If you decide to add other vegetables to the sauce, make sure they have time to cook through without turning to mush.

Calories and macros

240 kcal

Serving ≈ 420 g

Protein6 g10% of kcal
Fat15 g59% of kcal
Carbs17 g31% of kcal

100 g57 kcalProtein 1.4 gFat 3.5 gCarbs 4.1 g

Calculated from the recipe ingredients, excluding salt and spices. Data: USDA and Matvaretabellen.

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