Chickpeas and grated zucchini are sauteed and then mashed into a light but creamy sauce and served over a bed of pasta in this easy weeknight linguine with chickpeas and zucchini.
Weeknight Linguine with Chickpeas and Zucchini

As awesomely wonderful as Halloween candy dinners are….might I suggest we branch out to something a little more….savory? And nutrient dense?

I promise that it will be alllmooossstt as easy as sneaking your hand into your kid’s Halloween bucket when no one is looking. And probably more satisfying. I mean, I love a Reese’s dinner but it doesn’t exactly leave me feeling like a million bucks.

Weeknight Linguine with Chickpeas and Zucchini

Truth be told, we have absolutely no leftover Halloween candy to speak of. We attempted to take Remy trick or treating and it was the BIGGEST FAIL. There aren’t enough kids in our building to truly support a building-wide trick or treating experience, so we basically walked around within a few blocks radius of our apartment and weirdly peered into stores trying to see if it looked like they had candy bowls. WHICH NONE OF THEM DID.

Then we basically just went home and had her ring our doorbell so we could give her some random candy and goldfish crackers that we had lurking in our cabinets. Thank goodness she truly has no idea of what trick or treating even is so she didn’t fully realize how lame her parents are. We are already trying to strategize for next year because I have a feeling we won’t be able to get away with this much longer!

Weeknight Linguine with Chickpeas and Zucchini

Even so, we could all use an easy weeknight meal in our lives, and this is easier and healthier than most!

It’s so close to being a pantry meal, but I feel like most of us don’t keep zucchini in our pantry (with good reason).

Basically, you boil up some pasta. (Easy.) Then you make a sauce out of grated zucchini and canned chickpeas that get sauteed for a bit and then mashed together with some pecorino cheese and pasta cooking water. Add some chopped parsley and a squeeze of lemon juice and you are done! The resulting sauce is kind of creamy while still being pretty light AND the zucchini kind of melts into it so your child is forced to eat it without even realizing what’s happening.

And afterward, you still probably have room for Reese’s. It’s a parenting win on so many levels.

Weeknight Linguine with Chickpeas and Zucchini

Weeknight Linguine with Chickpeas and Zucchini
 
Chickpeas and grated zucchini are sauteed and then mashed into a light but creamy sauce and served over a bed of pasta in this easy weeknight linguine with chickpeas and zucchini..
Yield: 4-6 servings
Ingredients
  • 1 lb linguine
  • salt and black pepper, to taste
  • ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
  • ½ tsp red pepper flakes
  • 2 medium zucchini, shredded and patted dry
  • 1 (15 oz) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 2 oz pecorino romano cheese, grated
  • 3 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice, plus extra wedges for serving
Instructions
  1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the linguine according to package directions, until al dente. Reserve ½ cup of the pasta cooking water, then drain the pasta.
  2. Meanwhile, heat the oil, garlic, red pepper flakes, ½ tsp salt, and ½ tsp black pepper in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook until the garlic is lightly browned, about 3-5 minutes. Stir in the zucchini and chickpeas. Cook until the zucchini is wilted and most of the moisture has been cooked off, about 6 minutes. Use a potato masher to lightly mash the chickpeas so that they are broken down a bit but still have some texture to them.
  3. Remove from the heat and stir in half of the pecorino, the parsley, lemon juice, pasta, and reserved pasta cooking water. Season to taste with salt and black pepper. Serve with the remaining lemon wedges and pecorino cheese to garnish.
Notes
Recipe from Cook's Country

 

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3 Responses to Weeknight Linguine with Chickpeas and Zucchini

  1. Pam says:

    Find good neighborhoods that pass out full size candy – my kids loved those houses!

    The pasta looks delicious – comforting and hearty without the guilt.

  2. Delicious pasta dish !! Love all the ingredients in this one too!

  3. Kate says:

    I’m kind of sad your building didn’t do more!

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