Zucchini Ribbon Pasta
I think I tend to naturally gravitate towards fall and winter style meals so summer meal planning can be tough for me. I’m always looking for simple dishes that don’t require too much active cook time when it is hot out. The last few days have been some of the hottest this summer (thought it is hard to complain since it has been a pretty cool summer) so this zucchini pasta dish was nice to be able to quickly put together after work.
This seems to be the summer of zucchini; it feels like every dinner we’ve had the past few weeks has involved it in some way. Everywhere I look I see zucchini. I’ve been looking for different ways to prepare it so that we don’t get too tired of it.
When I looked for zucchini pasta dishes I kept finding a lot of meals that made zucchini “pasta” by using a vegetable spiralizer, which we don’t have (nor do we need one I think). I liked that this recipe allowed me to use our mandoline to slice the zucchini extra thin and long-ways instead of the rough chop I had used for most dishes.
We finished up our last summer travel this weekend so in the next few days I’ll be finally testing out the oven in our new apartment. Hopefully on Monday I’ll have a new bread to share!
- ¾ pound whole-wheat pasta
- 4 medium zucchini (about 2 pounds)
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 cup chicken broth
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan
- 1 cup thinly sliced basil leaves, plus more for garnish
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- Salt to taste
- In a large pot cook pasta in lightly salted boiling water. Cook 1 to 2 minutes less than the suggested time on the package. Drain and set aside when done.
- While the pasta is cooking prep the zucchini. Slice off the ends and cut zucchini in half lengthwise. Using a mandoline, or carefully with a sharp knife, slice zucchini into very thin (about ⅛-inch) slices.
- Stack slices and cut in half lengthwise. Reserve zucchini ribbons in a large bowl.
- In the pasta pot, heat olive oil over low-medium heat. Add garlic and cook until soft and translucent but not browned, about 1 minute.
- Add zucchini ribbons and ¼ cup chicken broth, raise heat to medium-high and cook until zucchini is still somewhat firm but just cooked, about 3 minutes.
- Return pasta to pot and add remaining chicken stock; cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until liquid has mostly absorbed into the pasta.
- Add Parmesan, basil, red pepper flakes, black pepper and toss to combine. Season with salt, to taste.
