Are you looking for healthy lunch ideas to take with you on the go to work or school? This Zucchini Pasta al Pesto is packed with flavor, low in carbohydrates and ready in just 10 minutes!
Serve it as a quick lunch or side dish at your next barbecue with a piece of grilled chicken, fish or these grilled vegetable skewers with smoky tempeh.
We got a chance to test the new Philips ProMix Viva Collection Hand blender with spiralizer. Super handy for vegetable noodles because it’s fully automated so you can also use it with harder vegetables like beetroot, carrot and parsnip.
The blender also functions as a small food processor/chopper, and a mixer for smoothies and soups. I use it to make fresh ginger tea (with finely chopped ginger root), to turn nuts into nut flour, to whip coconut cream and to make sauces like salsa, olive tapenade and pesto. You can easily prepare those sauces in advance and store them in the fridge for a couple of days.
Zucchini noodles are a great low carb alternative to traditional wheat pasta. You can serve them with any sauce of your choice, hot or at room temperature, to create a ‘keto’ version of your favorite Italian recipes: spaghetti Bolognese, pasta carbonara…
Did you know that raw zucchini is an excellent source of vitamin C too? One small zucchini contains almost half of your daily recommended dose. Great to strengthen your immune system, protect your cells against free radicals and keep your body younger for longer. Vitamin C also helps to absorb iron from plant-based sources such as spinach which in turn will help to increase your energy levels.
If you are looking for more low carb pasta recipes and vegetable dishes, have a look at my newest book Go Keto (only available in Dutch/Nederlandstalig at the moment) or our English Start to Keto eBook.
Bon appétit :)
Love,
Julie
Zucchini Pasta al Pesto (Vegan Keto, Gluten Free, Dairy Free)
DIRECTIONS:
- If you prefer white pasta, you can first peel the zucchini. Cut the zucchini in half crosswise. Attach each piece to the core of the spiralizer and use the hand blender to make the noodles.
- Mix the ingredients into a smooth pesto with the S-blade (or use a mortar and pestle).
- If you prefer a runnier pesto, add a few pieces of raw zucchini to the sauce. This will give you a lighter texture without extra olive oil.
- Serve the zucchini noodles with the pesto and top with lightly toasted pine nuts.
- Delicious with slow-roasted cherry tomatoes or steamed broccoli.
JULIE’S TIPS & TRICKS
- Feel free to get creative with the pesto and replace the spinach and basil with kale, arugula (rocket), radish greens… Instead of pine nuts you can use sunflower seeds, macadamia, pumpkin seeds, hemp seeds…
- Nutritional yeast is a vegan cheese replacement. It adds a delicious savory meal to this pesto. You can find it online or at most health food stores. Make sure to check that it doesn’t contain added wheat to ensure it’s gluten free.
Do you love vegetables noodles too? How do you like to serve them?
Are you looking for more low carb pasta recipes?
Let me know by leaving a comment down below.
Nutritional value (per tablespoon of pesto)
Net carbs 0.5 g, Protein 1 g, Fats 6 g, Calories 59.8 kcal
Nutritional value (per person as a side dish = ¼ of the full recipe)
Net carbs 6 g, Protein 6.2 g, Fats 24.6 g, Calories 272.5 kcal
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