‘Tis the season for zucchinis! I’ve been enjoying zucchini a lot this summer, but sadly I’ve had to buy it at the store!!
Crazy, I know.
We decided not to do a garden this year, and it’s just been so sad. 🙁
On a brighter note, I thought I would share my yummy zucchini noodle recipe and an easy Alfredo sauce recipe too! I’ve experimented with zucchini noodles a bit this past year and I think I’ve finally found the PERFECT way to make them! They are SO good!
This dinner was SO yummy! I actually mixed some whole wheat spaghetti (that I made for the kids) in with my zucchini noodles, but the zucchini was so good that I wished I hadn’t added the spaghetti! I topped my noodles with a little homemade Alfredo sauce and homemade spaghetti sauce (that I canned last summer).
Here’s how you make the noodles…
You will need:
- julienne peeler, vegetable peeler or a spiral vegetable slicer
- zucchinis
- 1-2 Tablespoons olive oil
- seasoned salt
- black pepper
That’s it!
First, you wash the zucchini. Use as many or as few as you like. I think one medium-sized zucchini makes about one serving…
Next, you need to cut the zucchini into “noodles.” I used a little julienne peeler that I bought at TJ Maxx last year for 5 or 6 bucks.
Most julienne peelers look like this though (mine’s a little “special”)…
**If you don’t have a julienne peeler, you can use a regular vegtable peeler and just make wide noodles. You can also use a mandolin slicer or an awesome spiral vegetable slicer (like this one on Amazon.) I would love to get one of those!
Then you just make “noodles” by peeling the zucchini! I kept the skin on and used it as part of the noodles and it was so yummy and nutritious! I know some people prefer to peel the skin off first though. It’s good either way.
Just keep peeling until you hit the seeds in the middle. Turn the zucchini and do this on all “sides.” Then, discard the rest. Note: those big ol’ mammoth zucchinis you get from your neighbors this time of year work perfectly for noodles!
Once you’ve peeled all of your zucchinis, put them in a colander, sprinkle them with a little salt and let them them sit for about 15 minutes or so (this helps to extract some of the water out.)
Then, squeeze the zucchini between some paper towels to get out the remainder of the water (you want to get out as much water as you can!)
Now you are ready to cook it! There are a bunch of different ways to do this; blanching, microwaving, steaming, etc. Some people even enjoy it raw. But, I think stir-frying is the yummiest way to prepare it!
Pour the olive oil into a big frying pan (I used my electric frying pan.)
Heat the oil for a couple minutes and then add the zucchini.
Sprinkle the zucchini with a little seasoned salt and black pepper and then stir fry it up! You can cook it as long as you like; cook it less if you want it a little crunchy and cook it more if you like it softer. I prefer mine to be soft, so I cooked it about 10-12 minutes or so…
Serve it immediately and top it with your favorite sauce or use them however you like! Super easy, yummy and healthy! Enjoy!
Also, I found a recipe on AllRecipes.com for Alfredo sauce. I made a few changes to make it a little healthier, but I still wouldn’t classify this recipe as “healthy.” However, I really only use a small portion of sauce (maybe 1/4 cup) so it’s not too bad. I also like to use some marinara sauce too!
Here’s how I made the Alfredo sauce:
Easy Alfredo Sauce
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1 (8 ounce) package light cream cheese
- 1 teaspoon garlic; minced (about 2 cloves)
- 2 cups milk (I used skim)
- 1 1/2 cups parmesan cheese; grated
- 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
Put butter and garlic into a medium saucepan. Melt butter over medium-low heat.
Add cream cheese and melt; stirring with wire whisk until smooth…
Add milk, a little at a time. Whisk it to smooth out the lumps.
Stir in the parmesan cheese and black pepper. Simmer and continue to stir/whisk until it reaches desired thickness.
All done! This sauce is so good! The original recipe I found on AllRecipes said this only made 4 servings, but I don’t know what they were thinking! This recipe made a ton! I only use about 1/4 cup of sauce per serving, so I would estimate this recipe makes about 12 servings.
Enjoy! Oh, and in case you’re interested I canned some wonderful spaghetti sauce last summer. I used the recipe from the site, My Crazy Life as a Farmer’s Wife. It is a wonderful recipe! I also made the pizza sauce and salsa recipes from that site too and they were both great!
Well that’s all for now. I hope you love these recipes! xoxo
- Serves: 3
- Serving size: 1 cup
- Calories: 71
- Fat: 5
- Carbohydrates: 6
- Sugar: 3
- Sodium: 20
- Fiber: 2
- Protein: 2
- Cholesterol: 0
- julienne peeler, vegetable peeler or a spiral vegetable slicer
- 3 medium zucchinis
- 1-2 Tablespoons olive oil
- seasoned salt
- black pepper
- Wash the zucchini.
- Cut zucchini into noodles using a julienne peeler (or other device.)
- Put the "noodles" into a colander, sprinkle with a little salt and allow to sit for 15 minutes (this helps to extract some of the water.)
- Squeeze the "noodles" between two paper towels to get the rest of the water out.
- Heat olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat.
- Add "noodles" to the pan and sprinkle with a little seasoned salt and pepper.
- Cook 8-12 minutes or until desired tenderness is achieved.
- Serve immediately, top with favorite sauce or use as desired!
- Serves: 12
- Serving size: ¼ cup
- Calories: 165
- Fat: 13
- Carbohydrates: 4
- Sugar: 3
- Sodium: 320
- Fiber: 0
- Protein: 8
- Cholesterol: 39
- ½ cup butter
- 1 (8 ounce) package light cream cheese
- 1 teaspoon garlic; minced (about 2 cloves)
- 2 cups milk (I used skim)
- 1½ cups parmesan cheese; grated
- ⅛ teaspoon ground black pepper
- Put butter and garlic into a medium saucepan. Melt butter over medium-low heat.
- Add cream cheese and melt; stirring with wire whisk until smooth.
- Add milk, a little at a time. Whisk it to smooth out the lumps.
- Stir in the parmesan cheese and black pepper.
- Simmer and continue to stir/whisk until it reaches desired thickness.
- Enjoy!
Yummy! Can’t wait to try. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks Stacey! I hope you love them!!
can you freeze the noodles?
I’ve never tried it, but if you try it let me know how it goes. That’s a great idea!
We used this julienne zuchinni noodle recipe tonight. Topped it with Classico “Sun Dried Tomato Alfredo” sauce, fresh chunks of tomato, and a bit of Parmesan cheese. Oh my word. It was absolutely amazing!!! This is a new favorite meal for sure. Thanks for posting the zuchinni steps! 🙂
I’m SO HAPPY you enjoyed my zuchinni noodle process. It sounds heavenly with the sauce, tomato and Parmesan cheese! I’ll have to try that. YUM!
This sauce is delicious! Thanks for the recipe!
Oh, I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed it! Thanks so much for your comment. 🙂
Your such a busy mom! Thanks for taking the time to share what looks to be a very delicious meal! I can’t wait to try it.
Oh, thanks so much! I really enjoy this meal and I hope you love it too. 🙂
I bought an inexpensive spiral vegetable slicer on Amazon and made my first zucchini noodles. OMG! Since I am diabetic and have high cholesterol, I thought pasta was out of my life. What a great find! I’m in love! Can’t wait to try the Alfredo sauce with light cream cheese and skim milk. Thank you for giving me a new (legal) passion!!
I just bought a spiral slicer on Amazon recently too and I love it! I’ve really been so happy with all the incredible pasta substitutes out there!