Linguine and Zucchini With Bacon Corn Pesto
By: Jo Ann
Published: Friday, April 15, 2011 - 2:44pm

Ingredients




6 slices bacon
4 cups corn, fresh cut from about 6 ears
4 garlic cloves, minced, evenly divided
1 1/4 teaspoons sea or coarse kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, fresh grated, plus more for serving
 cup walnuts or pine nuts, toasted
 cup cup+ ¼ fresh basil, chopped
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
10 ounces linguine (like Barila whole grain)
2 tablespoons Olive oil
2 medium zucchini, cut in ribbons using a potato peeler or mandolin

Preparation

1 Cook bacon in a large skillet until crispy and brown, set aside on paper towels to drain. Drain grease from skillet all but 1 tablespoon. Over medium-low heat add corn, garlic, salt and pepper sautéing until corn is tender but not browned, about 4 minutes. Transfer 1 and 1/2 cups corn to small bowl and set aside. Add remaining corn to the bowl of a food processor along with Parmesan, pine nuts and 1/3 cup basil. With machine running, add olive oil through feed tube and blend until pesto is almost smooth, set aside. 2 Start the pasta water cooking in a large pot of boiling salted water cooking until al dente and reserving 1 and 1/2 cups of the pasta water. Meanwhile in the same skillet heat 1 to 2 tablespoons over medium-low heat, add garlic and zucchini ribbons saute about 5 minutes just until zucchini starts to break down and becomes tender. 3 Drain pasta and return to pot. Add half of the corn pesto and corn kernels, tossing over low heat until warmed through, adding reserved pasta water by 1/4 cupfuls and additional corn pesto if needed until you get a smooth thin consistency and all the noodles are coated evenly. Season to taste with salt and pepper. 4 Sprinkle 1/4 cup basil leaves over top and serve with a sprinkle of bacon crumbles and Parmesan cheese.