Ingredients
120g wholewheat pasta – I use penne
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 small, firm courgettes – cut into random shaped chunks
4 cloves garlic – finely chopped
50g walnuts – roughly broken
150ml double cream
70g blue cheese – I used Dolcelatte
Chili flakes (optional)
A few sage leaves
Sea salt
Black pepper
Method
Bring a pan of water to the boil, then add the pasta and cook for 10 minutes or so until al dente
Drain the pasta, reserving some of the cooking water
Take a large frying pan and heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over a medium-to-high flame
When very hot, add the courgette chunks and fry on all sides until charred
Turn off the heat and add the garlic and walnuts (and chili flakes if using), and stir until the garlic has cooked. The residual heat in the pan should cook the garlic without it burning
Add the drained pasta to the pan, along with the cream and approx. 50ml of the pasta cooking water and place over a low heat
Tear the cheese into small chunks and dot over the dish
Heat the grill
Take a small frying pan, add the rest of the olive oil and place over a medium heat. When hot, fry the sage leaves until crispy. Remove and place on kitchen paper
Put the pan with the pasta in under the grill until the cheese starts to melt and bubble and the pasta and sauce is hot
Scatter the crisp fried sage leaves over before serving