My mother has a vegetable garden. This means that for every tomato I gratefully receive, I must also accept several kilos of zuchini. Ever wonder why zuchini is so cheap? Because it grows like a weed and no one really likes it.

I mean, no one loves it. No one says to themselves, "What I really really want for dinner tonight is zuchini!"

But there's nothing really wrong with zuchini, and treated with a little love and care it can be quite nice. And it grows like a weed, and to not eat it would be wasteful. Plus, my garden fresh tomato supply would be cut off in no time if I started refusing the zuke.

Zuchini Summer Pasta

Cut some yellow and green zuchini into 1 inch thick rounds. Cut the rounds into quarters.

Toss the zuchini with some garlic, salt, pepper, and olive oil. Allow to rest for 10 minutes.

Saute zuchini lightly, until it gets soft and your kitchen starts to smell like sauted garlic.

Remove from the frying pan and let rest in a large mixing bowl.

Pour some sherry vinegar over the zuke (2 T or so). Add some more olive oil and some salt to taste. Adjust the vinegar and oil until you like the flavour. Add a dash of real sherry if you have some.

Chiffonade some fresh mint. Lots. 2 or 3 fistfuls. Add to the zuchini.

Toss in some cooked pasta. I like Tagliatelle; use what you like.

Crumble some salty feta cheese over the pasta.

Drizzle a little bit of good olive oil over the top for shine and flavour.

Eat in the back yard.

(As a general rule, I don't like Chardonnay, but I gotta say, a buttery Chard is probably the best match for this dish.)