Recipe: Ottolenghi’s Roast Zucchini With Pistachio Salsa and Feta Is Greece on a Plate

In the heat of summer, when the sparkling Aegean looks especially inviting, Greece is in the thick of zucchini season. The hardy summer squash crowds the country’s grills and taverna tables, and this recipe from Ottolenghi’s Simple Too gets you a little slice of heaven with a few slices of the glossy green veg.  

“We’re taking you on holiday to a Greek island, where there's such a glut of zucchini during the summer that cooking with anything else is criminal,” he writes. 

Ottolenghi recommends prepping the zucchini in advance, using a mandoline or food processor to make light work of the slicing. While the veg is the star of this recipe, the vibrant salsa almost steals the show. “Zucchini, olive oil, honey, pistachios, feta, mint, basil. We can't think of a more evocative and transportive list of ingredients.” 

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Ottolenghi’s roasted zucchini with pistachios, honey and feta

Serves 2 as a main, or 4 as part of a spread
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 35 minutes

Ingredients

3-4 large courgettes, thinly sliced (800g)
60ml olive oil
70g pistachio kernels, toasted and roughly chopped
½ tsp Aleppo chilli flakes
1½ tsp runny honey
¼ tsp orange blossom water (optional)
20g basil leaves, thinly sliced
10g mint leaves, roughly torn
1 lime, 1 tsp juice, plus extra wedges to serve
50g feta, roughly crumbled
Fine sea salt and black pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 220°C fan.

Add the courgettes to a large parchment-lined baking tray along with 1 tbsp of oil, ½ tsp of salt and a good crack of pepper. Mix to combine, then roast for 30-35 minutes, gently turning the courgettes once or twice, until they're soft and starting to caramelise. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.

In a medium bowl, mix the remaining 3 tbsp of oil with the pistachios, chilli flakes, honey, orange blossom water, if using, herbs and lime juice. Fold in the courgettes and transfer to a serving plate. Scatter over the feta and serve, with extra wedges of lime alongside.

This is an edited extract from Ottolenghi Simple Too by Yotam Ottolenghi and Verena Lochmuller. Published by Ebury Press (RRP $69.99) with photography by Jonathan Lovekin.