Herby zucchini and peas with semolina porridge

#cuisines/italian #seasons/summer #dishes/main #dietary/gluten-free #scalable #active-time/30mins-or-less
Ottolenghi Simple
Servings: 4-6

Ingredients

• 50g unsalted butter
• 5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 6 large zucchini, sliced thinly into semicircles
• Salt and black pepper
• 200g frozen green peas, defrosted
• 25g basil leaves, roughly shredded
• 15g tarragon leaves
• 1 lemon, finely zested
• 50g pine nuts, lightly toasted
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 600ml (2.5 cups) whole milk
• 600ml (2.5 cups) water
• 180g (1 cup) semolina
• 100g pecorino, grated

Instructions

1. Put the butter into a large sauté pan with a lid and place over medium high heat. Once the butter has melted, add the garlic and fry for 1-2 minutes, until starting to brown. Add the zucchini, 3/4 tsp salt, and a good grind of pepper and cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until the zucchini start to soften. Decrease the heat to medium-low, cover, and continue to cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the peas and warm through for 1 minute. Remove from the heat, stir in the basil, tarragon, and lemon zest, and set aside while you make the porridge.
2. To make the porridge, put the milk and water into a medium saucepan along with 3/4 tsp salt and plenty of pepper. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and add the semolina. Whisk continuously for 3-4 minutes, until smooth and thick like porridge. Remove from the heat and stir in 80g of the pecorino.
3. Divide the porridge among 4-6 shallow bowls and top with the zucchini and peas. Finish with pine nuts, a sprinkle of the remaining pecorino, and drizzle with olive oil.

Journal

• 2025-08-09: made with Maria. Came out well! We skipped the tarragon because we didn’t have it. We ate it with Italian Meatballs. We are thinking that it would work well with polenta too.