Seriously. Zucchini “noodles” are great. They trick your mind into thinking you’re eating carb-heavy pasta, when in fact, you are eating healthy, vitamin rich zucchini. You know that spinach flavored pasta? This is like zucchini flavored pasta, that’s actually just zucchini. Gluten-free, low-carb, super healthy zucchini. There’s something about the noodle shape that makes it way more fun to eat than just chopped up squash. To make zucchini noodles, you’ll need some sort of spiralizer, essentially a lathe, for vegetables. For these zoodles I’m using Ali Maffucci’s Inspiralizer, which does the job perfectly. This is a quick and easy zucchini noodle bowl with zoodles that have been tossed with basil pesto and served with chopped sautéed chicken breast and tomatoes. With all the basil I have in my garden I made the pesto from scratch (recipe here, it’s easy!) but you could just as easily use store bought pesto. You cook the chicken first, and then while it’s resting, sauté the zucchini noodles in the same pan. Toss with the pesto, put it all together in a bowl and eat! It even reheats well for leftovers. Lower the heat to low and cover the pan, cook for 2 to 5 more minutes (depending on the thickness of the breast) until the chicken is just cooked through. Remove the chicken from the pan and let it rest while you make the zucchini noodles. Add the zucchini noodles and the sliced garlic and sauté, stirring often, until the noodles begin to wilt. Sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon of salt while you cook the zoodles. When they are just barely cooked and if they are releasing moisture, remove them to a colander placed over a bowl to drain. Serve the zucchini noodles in bowls topped with chicken, tomatoes, and sliced fresh basil leaves.
