Zucchini Spaghetti and Tomato Sauce – Eating Very Local

I am loving eating straight out of my garden, but I am only growing mini tomatoes, cucumbers and herbs.  So when my friend, Christine E., was going out of town and offered me two zucchini and a few large tomatoes from her garden, I happily accepted!   Typically, I’m not a zucchini lover, but the last time I had dinner at Christine’s house, she used a spiral vegetable slicerto make zucchini spaghetti salad.

This is what it looks like

It was delicious and not the usual way I have eaten zucchini.  But since she was away, I couldn’t ask her where she found the recipe, so I decided to make one of my own using the veggies from her garden, plus the veggies and herbs from mine – the ultimate local dinner!  And that’s how the Zucchini Spaghetti and Tomato Sauce recipe was born.  There was only one problem:  I didn’t own a spiral vegetable slicer. If you know me, I don’t have many kitchen gadgets. But, I happened to have something I could use that came with a garnishing kit my mother received as a gift (that she never used and gave to me):

With tool in hand, it was time to make…

 

Zucchini Spaghetti and Tomato Sauce

Serves 4

2 large zucchini

4 large tomatoes, cut into 1″ cubes.  A variety of colors is a nice touch!

3 garlic cloves, minced

2/3 cup scallions, thinly sliced

1/3 cup whole basil leaves (measure, then chiffonade.  If you don’t know what that is, check out my tutorial)

1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Parmesean cheese (optional)

Use whatever handy, dandy tool you have to julienne or spiralize your zucchini.  If you don’t have a tool and you are good with a sharp knife, you can try it that way.  With my tool, I left the seedy center behind because I was slicing from top to bottom.  With the spiral vegetable slicer, you can use almost the entire zucchini because it works like a lathe; spinning the zucchini and cutting it in a spiral pattern (hence the name).

Set the zucchini spaghetti aside because it’s time to make the tomato sauce!  In a large pan, heat the olive oil over a medium heat.  Add the scallions and cook until they are soft and the white pieces are translucent.  Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds, stirring constantly.  You don’t want to burn the garlic!  Add the chopped tomatoes, salt and pepper.

Lower the heat to low, cover and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes or until the tomatoes are cooked down and a sauce begins to form.

In the last minute, add the basil and stir.

Remove the sauce from the heat and allow it to cool for a few minutes.  Adding it to the zucchini without letting it cool will cook the zucchini, and in this recipe, we want it raw and “al dente.”  Once the sauce has cooled, mix the zucchini and sauce in a bowl and serve immediately with Parmesean cheese for dairy eaters, or nutritional yeast for your vegan diners.

The water content of tomatoes varies, so if your sauce has lots of water, you can drain it off before adding it to your pasta, or add a little thickener before removing it from the heat (like corn starch).

I can’t eat spaghetti because of my gluten intolerance (and GF pasta doesn’t do it for me) but this was a delicious, easy, and convincing substitute.  Even my pasta-loving husband loved the texture and said it could have fooled him (with the exception of the green skin).

Tell me, will you try it?  Better yet, does it make you want to buy the spiral vegetable slicer?

 

xo

B