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By Root 707 0

it is tender but firm. When it is done, drain it and combine it immediately with the egg-cheese mixture, tossing until the egg appears cooked. Stir in the zucchini, then taste and add more salt and pepper if necessary.

3. Toss in the herb and serve immediately, passing the remaining Parmigiano-Reggiano at the table.

VARIATION

Fettuccine Alfredo

Omit the zucchini. Just toss the pasta (preferably fettuccine) with eggs, cheese, and enough heavy cream to bind the sauce. Best served as a small first course for 6 to 8.

NOTE

The eggs will cook fully from the heat of the pasta. If this makes you at all nervous, however, do the final tossing of eggs, cheese, and pasta in the cooking pot, over the lowest heat possible.

PENNE WITH BUTTERNUT SQUASH

MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS

TIME: 30 MINUTES

THIS DISH IS a minimalist’s take on the northern Italian autumn staple of tortelli filled with zucca, a pumpkinlike vegetable whose flesh, like that of butternut or acorn squash, is dense, orange, and somewhat sweet. The flavor and essential nature of that dish can be captured in a thirty-minute preparation that turns the classic inside out, using the squash as a sauce and sparing you the hours it would take to stuff the tortelli.

1 pound peeled (see Notes) and seeded butternut squash (about 1½ pounds whole squash)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons butter or olive oil

1 pound penne or other cut pasta

⅛ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg, or to taste

1 teaspoon sugar (optional; see Notes)

½ cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

1. Cut the squash into chunks and put it in a food processor. Pulse the machine on and off until the squash appears grated. Alternatively, grate or chop the squash by hand. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil for the pasta.

2. Put a large skillet over medium heat and add the butter or oil. A minute later, add the squash, salt and pepper to taste, and about ½ cup of water. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Add water, about ¼ cup at a time, as the mixture dries out, but be careful not to make it soupy. When the squash begins to disintegrate, after 10 or 15 minutes, begin cooking the pasta. While it cooks, season the squash with the nutmeg, sugar if desired, and additional salt and pepper if needed.

3. When the pasta is tender, scoop out about ½ cup of the cooking liquid and reserve it, then drain the pasta. Toss the pasta in the skillet with the squash, adding the reserved pasta-cooking water if the mixture seems dry. Taste and add more of any seasonings you like, then toss with the Parmigiano-Reggiano and serve.

NOTES

Peel the squash with a knife, not a vegetable peeler, which is likely to break. And don’t worry if you take a bunch of the flesh along with the peel; remember that squash is almost always inexpensive.

Some butternut squash is sweeter than others, and there’s no way to predict this by appearance. Since this sauce relies on sweetness for its character, if the squash seems a little bland as it cooks, add about a teaspoon of sugar. It will brighten the flavor considerably.

PASTA WITH CAULIFLOWER

MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS

TIME: ABOUT 40 MINUTES

THE FUNDAMENTAL PROCEDURES required to make this pasta dish are easy, but this is as instructional as any simple recipe I know, and one that builds a wonderfully flavorful dish with just a few ingredients.

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 head of cauliflower (about 1 pound)

¼ cup olive oil

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 pound penne, ziti, or other cut pasta

1 cup coarse bread crumbs (see Note)

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Trim the cauliflower and divide it into florets. Salt the water and cook the cauliflower in it until it is tender but not mushy. Remove the cauliflower and set it aside; when it is cool enough to handle, chop it roughly into small pieces. (If you have a little extra time, you can poach the cauliflower whole—even leaving the leaves on if you like; they’ll add a little extra flavor to the water, and therefore to the pasta—which will save you the trouble of cutting