Summer Vegetable Cavatelli with Fresh Corn “Cream” – Corn Not Cows!

There’s a restaurant near us that features a burrata-filled tortellini, served in a cream sauce fortified with fresh, sweet corn. It’s a wonderful dish, and was the inspiration for this simple, summer vegetable cavatelli.

I was going to use reduced cream, with fresh, pureed corn stirred in at the end, but then I had a thought. What if skipped the dairy altogether, and made the sauce 100% cob-based? I was also out of cream.

So, I blended the fresh corn with some chicken broth, and ended up with what looked like corn milk. At first, I thought I’d made it too thin, but after a few tests reducing some in a pan, I realized it was thickening up beautifully.

While I was very happy with this, in hindsight, I’d do a few things differently next time. I went with pancetta, but I think the smokiness of bacon would have made this even more delicious. I also think you should probably add the corn cream to the vegetables, and bring it to a simmer before the pasta is added.

Of course, this recipe will work with whatever fresh seasonal vegetables you happen to find at the market, as long as its something that tastes good with sweet corn. In related news, everything tastes good with sweet corn. I hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 4 portions:

For the corn “cream” (will make more than needed for the recipe)

2 ears fresh white corn, or other sweet corn

2 cups chicken broth or water

For the pasta:

2 cups cavatelli

1 tbsp olive oil

4 ounces diced bacon or pancetta (sausage would also work nicely)

1/2 cup diced sweet red pepper

1 1/2 cup diced zucchini

pinch of cayenne

salt and pepper to taste

1 1/2 to 2 cups corn “cream,” or as needed

1 cup halved sweet cheery tomatoes

1 tbsp chopped Italian parsley

1 tbsp finely sliced basil leaves

grated Parmigiano Reggiano