Easy summer pasta dishes

Angel hair pasta with prawn, pea and lemon sauce

Serves 4

300g angel hair pasta

30ml extra virgin olive oil

small handful chervil, to garnish

Prawn, pea and lemon sauce

120ml extra virgin olive oil

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

sea salt

700g green king prawns

350ml verjuice

350ml single cream

zest of 1 lemon

½ cup fresh peas

1 tsp finely chopped dill

1 tsp finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Cook the pasta until al dente. Strain, toss with 30ml olive oil and set aside.

To make the sauce, clean and peel the prawns, keeping the tails intact. Heat 80ml of the olive oil in a frying pan over high heat, add half the garlic, a good pinch of salt and the prawns, and cook until the prawns have just changed in colour. Remove from the pan. Add the remaining oil and garlic to the pan and cook for 30 seconds, add the verjuice, bring to the boil and simmer for 2-3 minutes until slightly reduced.

Add the cream, lemon zest and peas, and simmer uncovered for 3-4 minutes until the sauce has thickened slightly and the peas have softened. Return the prawns to the pan, and stir in the dill and parsley. Check the seasoning.

Divide the pasta among 4 bowls, top with the sauce and garnish with fresh chervil.

- Neil Perry

Zucchini carbonara

Serves 1 or 2

200g fine egg tagliatelle or penne

2 zucchini

3 fresh egg yolks

3 tbsp parmesan, grated

1 tbsp lemon zest, grated

1/2 tsp sea salt

Black pepper, coarsely ground

2 tbsp flat-leaf parsley

Cook the pasta in plenty of boiling, salted water until almost cooked, probably about 6 minutes. Trim the zucchini and cut lengthwise into thick slices, then into small dice.

Add the zucchini to the pasta water for the final 2 mins of cooking time.

Beat the egg yolks in a heatproof bowl. Beat in the cheese, lemon zest and sea salt until creamy.

Drain the pasta and zucchini and immediately add to the egg mixture, tossing quickly until well-coated.

To serve, season with pepper and serve on two warmed dinner plates or pasta bowls. Scatter with parsley leaves.

- Jill Dupleix

Linguine with lemon, parsley and mint

Serves 4

1 lemon

150ml best quality extra virgin

olive oil

500g linguine

¾ cup freshly grated parmesan

½ cup chopped parsley

¼ cup chopped mint

Freshly ground pepper

Salt

Finely grate lemon rind and squeeze juice into a bowl. Mix in half the olive oil and leave for one hour so lemon flavour seeps into oil.

Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil and cook linguine to al dente. When nearly ready, heat serving bowl for pasta and whisk in lemon-oil mixture, remaining oil, parmesan, parsley, mint and 5 or 6 spoons of pasta cooking water. When cooked, drain pasta and toss in bowl, adding pepper and a little salt if necessary.

Serve immediately.

- Steve Manfredi