Fasta Pasta Fussili & Zucchini Peanut Sauce

Serves - 4

12 oz. Fasta Fussili                  2 Tbs. sesame oil
1 small zucchini                       ½ cup dry roasted peanuts, chopped
1 small yellow squash             1 bunch scallions, sliced
½ cup smooth peanut butter ½ cup cilantro, chopped
juice of one lime                    crushed red pepper to taste
¼ cup soy sauce

 Heat water to boil pasta and squash.  Remove tops and bottoms of zucchini and squash and cut the long way as thin as the pasta, then again at right angles to the first cut so the squash resembles the shape of the pasta.  Add to boiling water with pasta.

Combine peanut butter and lime juice, then stir in soy sauce, then sesame oil.  Set aside.Chop peanuts, scallions and cilantro.

 When pasta is done, drain and transfer to a pasta serving bowl.  Add peanut butter mixture and toss until coated.  Put the peanuts, scallions and cilantro on top.  Sprinkle crushed red pepper (CRP) on top, or omit it and pass the CRP at the table. Fasta Pasta with Smoked Salmon, Cucumber & Dill Sauce Serves 6 2 cucumbers 1 cup dry white wine 1 tsp. coarse salt 1 Tbs. fresh dill 4 Tbs. unsalted butter 1 cup light cream 1 bunch scallions, ¼ lb. smoked salmon 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 lb. Fasta short pasta Note: Don’t skimp on the salt, it all gets rinsed off. Peel, seed and dice the cucumbers and toss in a mixing bowl with the salt. Allow to sit for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, finely chop the scallions and dice the garlic. Also chop the dill and julienne the salmon. After 20 minutes, dump the cucumbers into a towel, not terrycloth, and squeeze as much liquid as possible. Rinse thoroughly and drain. Set aside. Start the water for the pasta, the rest goes pretty quickly. Melt the butter in a skillet and sauté the scallions and garlic. When barely softened, add the wine and reduce to one-third its volume. Add the dill and light cream and reduce until thickened. Put the pasta into the boiling water and stir to separate. Add the reserved cucumbers and the smoked salmon to the reduced wine, scallions and garlic and heat through. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Toss with hot pasta. Garnish with dill sprigs.