Several months ago, Collin at Hip2Save posted about eating zucchini in place of spaghetti. I was a bit skeptical at first, but since I’ve been getting a lot of zucchini from my farm share and I generally avoid wheat pasta, I decided to give it a try. I have to admit that I was wrong in my initial skepticism (and admitting that I’m wrong is not one of my strongest traits, as my husband will attest). This is absolutely delicious! The first time I tried it I used pesto, but it was more like a side dish than a main course. This version, topped with a simple tomato meat sauce, is a satisfying meal. While I love zucchini bread and chocolate zucchini cake, those recipes will now be competing with this one when I get a few zucchinis from the farm.
Ingredients:
4 medium zucchinis
1 tbs. olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
½ lb. ground turkey
28 ounce can whole tomatoes (or use fresh if you have them)
1-2 tsp. honey
1 tbs. red wine vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tbs. chopped basil
- With a mandolin or similar device, cut the zucchini julienne-style.
- Boil a large pot of water. Add the zucchini and cook for one minute. Drain.
- In a large cast-iron skillet, warm the olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant but not brown.
- Add the ground turkey to the skillet and cook until no longer pink.
- Add the tomatoes, honey, red wine vinegar, salt and pepper. Simmer for 10-15 minutes, or until most of the liquid has evaporated.
- Add the basil and heat for one more minute.
- Divide the zucchini among four pasta bowls. Top each serving of zucchini with a portion of the sauce. Serve immediately.
Price Breakdown
This meal costs $4.70 to make, or $1.18 per serving. That’s a great price for a hearty, naturally gluten-free pasta dinner!
This version is served with a vegan roasted tomato and pepper sauce.
Linking to Monday Mania, Traditional Tuesdays, Fat Tuesday, Gluten-Free Wednesday, Allergy-Free Wednesday, Simple Lives Thursday, Show and Tell Saturday.
I’ve also read about using zucchini in place of noodles, but haven’t tried. Glad that someone has and liked it!
It’s definitely worth a try!
Great idea. I often put shredded zucchini in my pasta sauce, but never thought about using it instead of pasta. It doesn’t get too squishy?
It’s not too squishy at all if you just cook it very briefly. I really enjoyed the texture.
I’d love to give it a try this summer. It might be a hard sell though.
Great idea. I’ll try that
Looks good, will have to try that. I’m not a big fan of gluten free pasta.
It’s a great alternative. I hope you like it!
I’m definitely going to have to try this. I cook and eat way too much pasta… can’t help it, I’ve got Italian blood!
Thanks for your comment. I hope you like it!
I’ve heard of using zuchinni in place of pasta before but I’ve also been skeptical. You’ve inspired me to try it though.
Great! Let me know what you think.