Pasta With Zucchini, Feta and Fried Lemon

When I add fried lemon to pasta I always parboil the slices in the pasta water for about a minute before I put the pasta in. Then I dry them on a paper towel and fry them with the capers. Cuts out the bitterness other commenters mention. Learned that from a Melissa Clark recipe!

I made this tonight and the bitterness in the lemon pith was just overpowering! Otherwise it was yummy, but the bitterness was a big drawback. I love another NYT recipe which has you slice lemon and boil the slices in heavily salted water for several minutes before adding them to veggies you are roasting. I may try that next time.

Since I love lemony brightness, I subbed minced preserved lemon for the capers. It was fantastic! What a great way to use a lot of zucchini in the summer.

To avoid this dish from turning bitter, first grate the lemon peel and set it aside for later. Cut off white pith with a sharp paring knife and discard; then slice the rest of the lemon into thin rounds. I added the grated lemon peel half way through cooking the zucchini. I also added the chopped parsley and basil, not oregano, to the zucchini mix just before mixing in the pasta. It softens the herbs a little and melts the flavors. This turned out delicious!

I made this but because of several references to bitterness of lemon, I decided to zest the lemon and added the zest and juice of the lemon towards the end of cooking. It was delicious! Will make this again.

Feta and walnuts are both splendid proteins themselves, but you could certainly add salmon!

Relax. Just toss in a handful or so of chopped parsley. You're cooking, not baking.

I made this last night and just ate leftovers for lunch. I think the flavors may be even better the next day (and brought to room temp). I made pretty much as written with spinach-and-chive fettuccine. I did not rinse the pasta b/c you rinse off the yummy salted pasta water. Drain pasta, transfer to a large serving bowl, and toss with EVOO and a little reserved pasta water. The recipe does not specify, but I used raw walnuts since you toast them in olive oil. No parsley? Try with arugula - yum!

Sam, when the recipe says one cup parsley or dill, I cut fresh dill (and chopped the frond branches, not the stems) does that mean: 1) Fresh cut herbs in a measuring cup 2) Fresh cut herbs PACKED into a measuring cup or 3) Already cut herbs packed into a measuring cup or spoon. Please advise. D

Made this last night and so happy I read the comments first! Added garlic to the shallots & onion (I used one of each), let sweat an extraordinary length of time (25 mns), then added zucchini and let brown and carmelize for another 25 minutes. Once finished tossed the whole thing with hot pasta, the juice and zest of one lemon, and the fried walnuts. Juicing/zesting the lemon avoided any bitterness! Didn't have feta so used parmesan but were just as happy. A real winner.

After reading many notes regarding the bitterness, I zested the lemon before frying just half a lemon (used the juices from the other half) and I absolutely loved it! The perfect amount of lemony goodness

Going to make this tonight, think I will add an anchovy or two cause Melissa :)

I did this with couscous, because I had a certain 5 year old daughter request it, but turned out delicious! Thanks for another great weeknight recipe, NYT Cooking!

Mine turned out extremely bitter... delicious but with an overwhelming bitterness coating everything. Did I do something wrong?

This was the perfect zingy, attention-grabbing warm pasta salad to eat with grilled salmon (outside, with friends). No problems with lemon bitterness but my lemon didn't have much pith and was thinly sliced with a mandoline. I subbed a mix of sweet onion and green onion for shallots, and almonds for walnuts (because that's what I had on hand)- since it turned out so well with those substitutions i'd recommend this as a versatile recipe.