Make this simple weeknight pasta when you have a bounty of summer squash. With just 10 ingredients, it's fresh, bright & satisfying.
You still have tons of zucchini right? Ok, I thought so, just checking. This summer squash pasta recipe should be next on your to-make list. It’s a straight-forward, simple dish – perfect for highlighting a special seasonal ingredient like summer squash.
My zucchini and yellow summer squash were on the small side, so I sliced them into thin little coins and paired them with orecchiette pasta. I like how the shape of the summer squash and the shape of the pasta are somewhat similar. It makes for a nice “easy-to-get-it-all-on-your-fork” sort of texture.
How to Make This Summer Squash Pasta Recipe
Making this pasta couldn’t be easier. Because summer squash cooks quickly, it comes together in minutes, so it’s a great choice for those days when you’re craving something delicious but don’t want to spend a lot of time in the kitchen. Here’s all you need to do:
- Cook your pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water.
- Sauté the summer squash with garlic and rosemary until it’s lightly browned.
- Stir in a big handful of spinach and a large squeeze of lemon juice! Then, fold in the cooked pasta and a bit of the starchy pasta water.
- Finish it all with feta, capers, and a sprinkle of red pepper flakes. For a vegan option, add pesto instead of the cheese.
- Season to taste and dig in!
Summer Squash Pasta Recipe Variations
Like most simple recipes, this summer squash pasta is easy to vary according to your tastes or what you have on hand. Here are a few ideas to change it up:
- Switch the herb. Rosemary isn’t super summery, but it’s what I had on hand, and its flavor contrasts the lemon nicely. If you’ve been more successful with your herb-growing, feel free to switch it up – thyme, basil, or mint would all be great. If you use leafy herbs, just be sure to add them closer to the end so they stay fresh and bright.
- Swap the pasta shape. I love orecchiette, as it creates little cups to scoop up the veggies, cheese, and capers, but use what you have on hand. Penne, rotini, or even spaghetti would work just as well in this dish.
- Vary the veggie. Lots of varieties of summer squash are available at farmers markets, so use whatever you can get your hands on. Along with zucchini and yellow squash, pattypan squash or scallop squash would be delicious here. If you don’t have summer squash, you can use this recipe as a template for whatever vegetable you do have. Broccoli, for example, would be excellent.
And if you want to use a variety of veggies in your summer pasta, check out this one pot penne or this roasted veggie pasta.
Looking for more summer squash recipes?
Try this zucchini bread, this pasta salad, this baked zucchini side dish, or this pizza next.
Lemony Summer Squash Orecchiette
- 3 small summer squash (or 2 medium)
- 8 ounces orecchiette pasta
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, more for drizzling
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 teaspoon finely chopped rosemary
- 2 cups chopped spinach or (or chard or kale)
- Juice of ½ lemon, more to taste
- ⅓ cup feta cheese
- 2 tablespoons capers
- A few pinches red pepper flakes
- grated Parmesan cheese, optional
- Sea salt & fresh black pepper
- Thinly slice squash, about ⅛ inch thick (on a mandoline if you have one). Lay squash slices on a towel and pat dry.
- Cook the pasta in a pot of salted boiling water until al dente.
- In a large skillet heat the oil over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and rosemary. Stir until fragrant, then add the sliced squash, salt and pepper. Stir, then let the squash cook on each side until lightly browned.
- Stir in the lemon juice, then add the spinach and toss. Add the pasta along with a bit of the starchy pasta cooking water.
- Stir in feta, capers and red pepper flakes. Season to taste and add Parmesan cheese, more lemon juice, and drizzles of olive oil, as desired.
Stainless sauté pan: Williams-Sonoma Open Kitchen Stainless Cookware
Sounds (and looks) delish!
feta and caper pair so well together – this is great for summer.
one of my favorite combos!
I don’t eat pasta myself, but I really like how pretty the yellow and green squash look together. This may be my dinner tonight … lol
ha – I don’t eat it a ton but every now and then (especially when I can pack in lots of veggie!)
This is perfect…I have SO much zucchini!
i don’t have summer squash, but i have about one thousand million trillion gazillion billion buttercup squashes that are taking over my entire yard, it is insane and i am afraid for the day that they will all be ripe at the exact same time. putting this recipe in my back pocket until then. i love me some orecchiette 🙂
i was gifted a summer squash literally the size of a small child recently….i will be trying this!
Oh trust me I have toooons of zucchini 🙂 This looks gorgeous and orecchiette is a favorite in my house!
Oy, I now want this for dinner. This sounds so yummy, and fresh and summery – and the perfect recipe for my monster zucchini. Thank you!
I was just wondering what to do with all my leftover zucchini! Thanks for this awesome recipe.
Although I don’t eat a ton of pasta, this looks beautiful! You can never have too much zucchini and I love the idea of adding pesto to the mix!
This is so perfect for the tiny zucchini I have hanging out in my fridge, love! I love the idea of ‘get it all on your fork’ dish, this is a real problem : )
ha, thanks 🙂
The absolute perfect summer pasta! Love this recipe!
We’ve got SO many zucchini’s in our garden. So simple, easy and fresh. Can’t wait to make this!
Thanks Catherine 🙂
I love orecchiette! It’s one of my favorite pasta shapes. 🙂 This looks delicious! I’ll definitely make it the next time I buy orecchiette.
I love everything about this pasta. Yes there’s still a ton of zucchini around here and I am definitely going to make this before summer is over.
I cannot wait to make this!! So simple and fresh looking! Not to mention…we have an abundance of zucchini right now 😉
This looks lovely! And I just happen to have more zucchini than I know what to do with!
I’ve never had orecchiette pasta! I must give it a try!
This looks light, summery, and full of flavor 🙂
Looks so fresh and yummy…
perfect for todays hot weather in Athens!
Excellent blog, the recipes looks delicious! Keep on cooking 🙂
This looks delicious! Definitely gonna make this some time 🙂
i just had squash for the very first time and absolutely loved it. definitely going to make this recipe as soon as possible, sounds delicious!
xo, cheyenne
Where is your beautiful serving platter/plate from? It is lovely!
thanks – it’s vintage, I found it on Etsy a few years ago (sorry that’s not helpful!)
I made this pasta when we met friends for a long weekend getaway last weekend and it was a hit. Love the simple but full-on flavors in this…this recipe is a keeper!
so glad it was a hit!
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This is mouth-watering, will definitely try to do this recipe before summer ends !
Thanks for another great recipe! Husband loved this, and if I lie to daughter about the squash (it’s yellow starch) she likes it too. 🙂
Ha, yellow starch – love it :). Glad your family liked it!
Daughter is 8, and she refuses to try new things. So I find myself lying sort of frequently when it comes to food. Sweet potatoes are called carrots, potatoes are just starch (cheese covered, seasoned, etc) and squash is either starch or cheese, depending on the dish. I hope this doesn’t turn out to be a bad decision in the future. O.o
I love this combo – had to substitute GF pasta but the feta, capers and lemon together was so good. Thank you for your beautiful blog!
*were* so good.
http://www.lemonbutterlove.com
Wow this looks good! All of my favorites, I love those little ears 😉
I don’t usually comment and I can’t even remember how I found this recipe. I will say – thank you, it was wonderful and will soon be a summertime staple in my he. My sons are polishing off whatever’s left out there as I type. Wouldn’t change a thing. The added lemon and parm at the end, coupled with a little crushed reds and peppers made for an impressive presentation. Wow!
I don’t usually comment and I can’t even remember how I found this recipe. I will say – thank you, it was wonderful and will soon be a summertime staple in my home. My sons are polishing off whatever’s left out there as I type. Wouldn’t change a thing. The added lemon and parm at the end, coupled with a little crushed reds and pepper made for an impressive presentation. Wow!
I’m so glad!! Thanks for coming back to comment and let me know 🙂
I really love this recipe but it is winter right now yet I want to make this dish.What can I substitue for the summer squash?
Hi Natalie,
Butternut squash (roast it in the oven first, until it’s tender and browned before adding to the pasta). Basically reference this recipe: http://www.loveandlemons.com/butternut-squash-walnut-sage-pasta/ or even this one with fennel and winter greens: http://www.loveandlemons.com/linguine-fennel-winter-greens/
These 3 recipes are similar in their basic concept… Hope that helps!
Thank you so much! The butternut squash one looks fabulous. I am such an orchette freak so I will just use that shape:) Love all your recipes so much they always turn out so well my boyfriend thinks I am a great cook but I keep telling him no I am just good at replicating Love and Lemons:)
Ha, I love that :). Glad you’ve both been enjoying the recipes!
What do you think about doing this as a brown rice salad instead of with pasta?
So good especially considering how very simple it is. A great late summer dish.