My kids and I love pasta. And for me, pasta has long been the vehicle to introduce them to all sorts of flavors, from meat to vegetable sauces, all kind of veggies and different varieties of cheese and herbs. Thanks to the noodles I feed them, my kids eat–without knowing it, of course–all kinds of veggies and fresh produce.
Today's recipe is by far my best "invention" since I discovered the wonders of spaghetti squash. The best thing about this pasta is that it's not pasta at all! It's made from zucchini! And it's easy to make! Read on and find out how you can trick your kids too!
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Just like you just read it: this is a vegan gluten-free dish and perfect for summer. You can serve it hot, warm or cold and i__t takes no more than five minutes of cooking__! My kids had it and asked me what were those "green spaghetti" and I told them the truth: thread zucchini. There were no faces or tantrums and even better: both asked for more. So bingo for this new way of eating fresh vegetables.
The secret to making this zucchini "pasta" (soon I will make a recipe with zucchini and carrot) is to cut the zucchini into strands. To do this I used a special cutter that I bought on Amazon. It's the best thing that has happened in my kitchen, so I recommend it with my eyes closed.
Zucchini noodles with filleted tomatoes, basil and pine nuts
Makes 4 servings
__Ingredients:
__4 tablespoons olive oil
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
8 tomatoes, peeled, seeded and filleted
4 zucchinis rinsed
Salt
1 cup of fresh basil leaves
8 tablespoons of toasted pine nuts. You can also use pistachios, walnuts or almonds. The idea is to be creative cook with or that we have in the fridge)
Grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
To see this recipe step-by-step look at the slide show below.
And for more of my recipes visit my cooking blog.
Image via Enriqueta Lemoine
Have your zucchini ready...
Cut the zucchini into strands. If you don’t have the peeler, slice lengthwise and then cut them as finely as you can with a knife. The idea is to make “spaghetti” out of the zucchini.
Have your nuts ready
Toast the pine nuts of nuts of your choice, by placing them in a skillet over medium heat, for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Sauté the garlic
In a skillet over medium heat, add the olive oil and sauté the garlic for 2-3 minutes.
Sauté the tomatoes
Add tomatoes and sauté for 2 more minutes.
Add the zucchini
Add the zucchini, salt to taste and sauté for 1 to 2 minutes to the most. Do not to overcook, otherwise you will see how the zucchini significantly reduces its volume.
Add the basil and pine nuts
Remove from heat and add the basil leaves. Serve with pine nuts or the nuts of your choice. You can also add Parmesan cheese (not shown in the pic).
