Pasta with Zucchini and Chickpeas. Also ... Squirrel!

Oh, you guys, I love this dish. For real, Pasta with Zucchini and Chickpeas is one of the best, simplest dinners I’ve made in a long time. The zucchini gives it snap, the chickpeas give it heft and fiber, and the pasta … well, pasta is pasta. It’s manna from heaven.

The recipe originally comes from Real Simple, and the only change I made was to reduce the olive oil by a tablespoon. The rest was pretty healthy on its own, and under $1 per serving. Plus, it’s excellent for lunch the next day. Just take care to evenly distribute the chickpeas when you’re serving the dish, or the last recipient will get 75% of those suckers. (I learned this the hard way.)

Sadly - and here’s the catch - the picture I took is butt-terrible. Moreso than usual, even. The bowl and background are yellow and out-of-focus, and the food itself looks like Cthulu. So, to compensate, two things:

A) I used the photo from David Chiu’s website, which might come from Real Simple, but I’m not sure.

B) Squirrel!

Man, I love that thing. If you have some free time, the folks over at Buzzfeed have Photoshopped the Crasher Squirrel (as it has become known) into all kinds of exciting scenarios like this one:

Whee!

Anyway, that’s a wrap for this week. I’m away again next week, so posting will be kind of light, with a guest poster or two. Have a lovely weekend, and don’t forget to squirrel. I mean, make this dish.

Pasta with Zucchini and Chickpeas
Serves 4
Adapted from Real Simple.
Picture from David Chiu possibly via Real Simple.

3/4 lb. pasta like linguine or spaghetti
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 small or 2 medium zucchinis, chopped into ¼-inch half-moons
Kosher salt
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 15-oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

1) Cook pasta in salted water until al dente. Drain, making sure to keep 1/2 cup of pasta water for later.

2) While pasta is cooking, heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add zucchini. Add 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt. Saute 4 or 5 minutes. Add garlic, chickpeas, and red pepper. Saute an additional 2 or 3 minutes. Kill heat.

3) Add pasta, your reserved pasta water, and 1/4 cup parmesan to skillet. Stir to combine. Serve with remaining parm sprinkled on top, take care to evenly distribute the chickpeas.

Calories, Fat, Fiber, and Price Per Serving
542 calories, 9.6 g fat, 8.5 g fiber, $0.97

Calculations
3/4 lb. pasta like linguine or spaghetti: 1262 calories, 5.1 g fat, 10.9 g fiber, $0.60
1 tablespoon olive oil: 119 calories, 13.5 g fat, 0 g fiber, $0.11
3 small or 2 medium zucchinis: 63 calories, 0.8 g fat, 4.3 g fiber, $0.85
Kosher salt: negligible calories, fat or fiber, $0.02
2 cloves garlic, minced: 9 calories, 0 g fat, 0.1 g fiber, $0.10
1 15-oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed: 500 calories, 4.6 g fat, 18.5 g fiber, $0.80
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper: negligible calories, fat or fiber, $0.02
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese: 216 calories, 14.3 g fat, 0 g fiber, $1.36
TOTAL: 2169 calories, 38.3 g fat, 33.8 g fiber, $3.86
PER SERVING (TOTAL/4): 542 calories, 9.6 g fat, 8.5 g fiber, $0.97