Try This Olive Garden-Inspired Spiralized Primavera Pasta Recipe
In the all-star hall of favorite foods, pasta is number one for many of us. But what if you’re trying to cut back on eating carbs but not quite ready to go all-in on zoodles? You don’t have to give up luscious strands of semolina for zucchini noodles. The secret: Combine them!
It’s a great way to eat more vegetables, add a bit of snap to your bite, and introduce color into your meal. This can be as simple as tossing spaghetti and zoodles into marinara with tongs or stirring together a primavera pasta with green zucchini ribbons.
The idea for the recipe below was inspired by Olive Garden, but is something you can whip up for a quick weeknight meal when you’re dining in. Use a white wine that you like drinking, since you’re only using a scant amount in the pasta sauce.
Zoodles Primavera RECIPE
(Serves 4)
Ingredients:
- 4 ounces whole grain spaghetti
- 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 2 zucchini, spiralized into zoodles
- 1 carrot, peeled and sliced into thin long strips
- 1 yellow bell pepper, cored and sliced into thin long strips
- 1 large clove garlic, minced
- 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves, plus more for garnish
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
- 10 grape tomatoes, halved
- dried red pepper flakes
- 1/4 cup white wine
- grated Parmesan, optional
Instructions:
- Cook the pasta according to package directions. Reserve some pasta water.
- While the pasta’s cooking, add the butter and drizzle the oil into a sauté pan set over medium heat.
- Once the butter has melted, add the zoodles, carrot, bell pepper, garlic, 2 tablespoons of parsley, and 1 teaspoon kosher salt to the pan. Stir to coat. Add the tomatoes and red pepper flakes. Pour in the wine and add the remaining teaspoon of kosher salt. Cover to simmer for about 2 minutes or until the zoodles look slippery.
- Add the pasta to the pan along with 2 tablespoons of the pasta water. Stir with tongs for a minute or two, until the dish comes together and the liquid has mostly cooked out.
- Sprinkle a dash of the remaining parsley onto each pile of plated primavera noodles, as well as Parmesan, if using.
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(Recipe and photos via Annelies Zijderveld / Brit + Co)
