DECADENT Vegan NO CARB Summer Pasta with Zucchini Noodles, Avocado, Asparagus & Peas

 

All Photos © Christine Elise McCarthy 2012

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Do not be fooled by how closely this pasta resembles my recent spinach & pea pesto linguini.  It is a completely different animal.  This is a vegan dish but only by chance – rather than design.  It can be made carb-free or carb-heavy.  That is your call.  I went carb-heavy – because, quite frankly, I am a carb whore.  Thick & doughy midsections take dedication to preserve & I am committed to mine.  You might be devoted to your hard won abs – in which case – go carb-free.

But how can I make a carb-free pasta – you might ask.  Well – it is easier than you think.  Just use fresh zucchini instead of spaghetti!  I discovered this concept recently & I can foresee it becoming a regular thing in this house.  I thought I’d need a kitchen tool called a spiralizer and so I did a lot of research on which to buy before I headed out to get one.  Spiralizers can turn potatoes into curly fries or zucchini into pasta – among other things.  I was too impatient to buy one online so I headed to Bed Bath & Beyond yesterday just to get it.  Alas – they had none.  The guy there said a mandolin might do the trick and I have one of those – so I returned home to experiment.  I saw online that some folks said a food processor could create fettuccini-like noodles & others said a vegetable peeler could work, too.   I decided to experiment.

The mandolin was sort of effective but mine is so sharp & unstable – I was kinda freaked out.  Then I remembered!  Didn’t I have some odd sorta toothy, clawlike vegetable peeler deep in the chaotic disasters that are my kitchen tool drawers??  I dug around a bit & voila!!!  There it was!  With a sturdy, rubber Tonka handle & a plastic blade guard.

I tried this on a sample zuke & it worked like a charm!  I held the peeled zucchini on one end with a fork & shaved away at the zucchini & got a wonderful spaghetti-like result.

Look at this link & see how cool spiralized zucchini is – HERE.

This dish can be made pretty close to entirely raw – if that’s your thing.  Simply blanching the zucchini noodles for 2 minutes or sauteing the zucchini noodles in olive oil for 2-3 minutes will make them deliciously edible & the sauce is raw, too.  I’m not concerned with raw so much.   If you hate peas or asparagus – just leave them out.  This recipe can be made with or without actual pasta.  This version has pasta.  I am going to give you a recipe here that uses an entire box of spaghetti – and the zucchini noodles – so it would likely feed 4-6 as a main course.  You can adjust this easy recipe to use pasta or not – and change the quantities if you only want to make a serving or two.  If you make a lot – as I did – but do not want to eat it all up immediately – just keep the ingredients (zucchini noodles, pasta with peas & asparagus and the sauce) separate from each other & only blend them in the serving size you need when you are ready to eat it.  I would boil water & just reheat the actual pasta & veggies (a minute or two) before draining & then mixing with the zucchini & sauce.  Don’t heat the zucchini.  It will get soggy.

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DECADENT Vegan NO CARB Summer Pasta with Zucchini Noodles, Avocado, Asparagus & Peas

INGREDIENTS

1 lb spaghetti (if using)

6 large (peeled or not – your call) zucchini – spiralized or shaved into noodles (do not use the seeded center of the zukes)

1 cup frozen peas (optional)

10 spears asparagus – sliced into bite size pieces (optional)

SAUCE

2 large avocados

1/3 cup water

6 TBS fresh oregano

juice of 1/2 lemon

zest of entire lemon

chopped basil as garnish

s&p to taste

DIRECTIONS

Peel (or not) then shave, spiralize or grate your zucchini into noodles.  Do not use the seeded center part.  I saved my centers & peels & made a zucchini hummus out of them afterward.  You can use them any way you want or toss them.  Whatever.

Once you have your noodles – put them in a colander in the sink & sprinkle a tsp salt over them.  Toss them to distribute the salt & let them drain while you make your sauce.

In a food processor, blend your avocados, lemon juice & zest, oregano, water (use more or less – to get the right consistency) and S&P to taste.  This is – essentially – a guacamole.  Make it very creamy.

Boil the water & cook your pasta according to directions.  In the last two minutes of the pasta cooking – add the peas & asparagus.  If not using pasta – just boil water & blanch the peas & asparagus for two minutes.  Drain.

Now simply assemble the ingredients.  I made a single serving by using equal parts pasta & zucchini noodles & then tossed them with the sauce.  A little chopped basil and S&P and I was ready to eat.  The remaining part – I am bringing to a party tonight & will assemble THAT there!

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Cheers!