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Zucchini Noodle and Meatball Frittata {Paleo}
I will never tire of zucchini. It’s 100% my spirit vegetable (is that a thing?). I am constantly dreaming up ways to incorporate zucchini noodles into unexpected places and since I always prefer to start my mornings with savory protein and healthy-fat rich breakfasts with a peekaboo of veggies, this frittata is the perfect weekend breakfast option or even better, it makes for an impressive brunch offering. But also let’s be real, if you are like me and you love the occasional breakfast for dinner, this just nails it!
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Italian Style Chicken Sliders
It is no secret, my love of spiralized veggies. You guys have seen countless zucchini noodle recipes on this site over the years, along with butternut squash noodles, sweet potato noodles, cucumber ribbons and lots more. But, my friend Ali of Inspiralized, she takes this love to a whole new level and she has built an entire brand on cooking healthfully with the spiralizer! Ali even developed her own incredible spiralizer, The Inspiralizer, better than any spiralizer that existed before. I have switched over to it and I am in love. (You can buy it on Amazon or direct from her site)
You may recall her first book, Inspiralized which came out last year, that I told you all about and shared a recipe from. Ali is back at it again this year with her second book. Inspiralize Everything.
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Chicken Kapama – Greek Braised Cinnamon Chicken
I don’t have the best memory, I never have. I forget things easily, but my memories surrounding foods and scents, especially with family – those are strong. I still remember the very distinct aromas of my Great Yia Yia’s home. The basement often smelled of chocolate, the living room of butterscotch candies and the kitchen, of so many amazing Greek flavors. Sometimes it would be Greek pastries or bread, often there was a stew or soup bubbling away or greens she plucked from the yard cooking down in some tomato sauce.
Growing up in a Greek family meant lots of traditional Greek dishes passed down through the generations, most without a written recipe anywhere to be found. Some dishes, like this one, Chicken Kapama {kah-pah-MAH}, I can still remember both my Great YiaYia and my YiaYia and eventually my parents, making for us. I can very clearly recall the distinct aroma the house would be filled with. The warming, comforting scent of cinnamon when mixed with tomato, to this day warms my heart and brings a smile to my face. This unique flavor combo pops up in several classic Greek dishes and it is a favorite of mine. It smells like home.
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Grain-free Basil and Mint Zucchini “Noodles”
Being in the blogging world over 6 years now, I have had the pleasure of meeting some very incredible people along the way. But some, they walk into your life and you know that they were placed into your path with a purpose. I met Amie Valpone last year, in the midst of the hustle and bustle of a busy conference. We spoke like half-witted high school girls, catching up, giggling, sharing and connecting over our personal healing journeys. Amie has an infectious lust for life and for living that instantly resonated with me. As someone that has spent the past 10+ years dealing with various (though very minor in comparison) health struggles, I very much appreciate how Amie has chosen to use her struggles as a means to help others, through her website thehealthyapple.com, I also admire that she has used her very challenging healing journey to fuel her passion to teach others that your health and vitality lies in your hands and that you DO have the power to overcome. I feel like the word “inspiration” is hardly enough for this firecracker.
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Zucchini Noodles with Caramelized Fennel and Spicy Sourdough Breadcrumbs
As someone that generally has so much to say in real life, at times I can find this blank window of a new post to be completely daunting. I am not a writer, not by any stretch of the imagination. My posts are riddled with incorrect punctuation and remedial grammatical errors – probably every last post on this website. I can be somewhat insecure about this fact, it used to almost be crippling at times. Being ever a perfectionist, I want everything to always be on-point and I can give myself an insanely hard time when I feel that things don’t meet my expectations.
Thankfully I have the utmost confidence in my recipes and my ideas, so I power through. I chat a little, I share what’s on my mind and we just get through it together. This is one of those times that my brain is so overloaded with everything going on, that while it feels full to the brim, somehow, I am also at a loss. With mid-terms last weekend, Expo West this weekend add a back injury, parties, a newborn nephew on the other side of the country, tons of people in town right now, and everything in between – there is almost too much to share that somehow there ends up being nothing important enough to write to you about. Or maybe my brain is just beyond tired. I am leaning more towards that.
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Summer’s Harvest Farmers Market One-Pot Zucchini Pasta
We have all seen the one pot pasta phenomenon and while I am a big fan and even shared a gluten-free rice pasta version of this today, I also wanted to create a grain-free version, highlighting my personal favorite, noodle – zucchini noodles/pasta AKA “zoodles”!
This veggie-centric take on the classic, simple, weeknight meal is not just a great way to enjoy the best of the season, but I have found it’s also a wonderful way to use up some of those last bits of veggies, the things in the fridge you aren’t sure what to do with, the scraps from another recipe. Toss them in and go to town. You can’t go wrong.
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Chilled Green Curry Kelp Noodle Bowl
I know for those of you just barely feeling spring trying to force it’s way in, you won’t want to hear about the extreme heat we’ve had in southern California recently. With temperatures in the 90′s, it seems we have skipped right over the spring and jumped right into summer. I have switched from comforting winter soups and stews and roasted veggies to salads and cooler meals.
Soup that isn’t served hot may seem strange, but there are times when it just works and this is definitely one of them. It’s super fast to throw together — no slaving over a stove! — you don’t have to wait around for hours to let it simmer and there is very little prep.
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Zucchini Noodles with Fig, Arugula and Pancetta
According to Pinterest it’s fall already. I am seeing more pumpkin recipes in my feed than what should be legal, Halloween DIY projects, boots and layers of clothing and more. Let’s slow it down a little, folks. It’s STILL summer, it’s hot out and I still have lots of zucchini and tons of figs that need eating.
I know fall is just around the corner and it’s my favorite time of year, but I refuse to be bullied into pumpkin. Let’s enjoy what we have, while it’s still here. There is so much amazing produce coming from the farmers markets, our CSA box and my garden, I just cannot even think about squash and all it’s cooler weather friends.
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Zucchini Noodles with Roasted Heirloom Tomatoes
I have to be honest, I debated even sharing the recipe for these Zucchini Noodles with Roasted Heirloom Tomatoes. It is quite simple and really no frills. But, what it lacks in complexity and concept, it more than makes up for in flavor, ease and satisfaction. I can tell you that while there really is nothing extra special or innovative about this dish, for me lately with the craziness of life, when it comes to cooking, I am drawn to perfect summertime simplicity. As I was trying to decide on photographing this to share, I stepped back for a moment and realized how I actually live on dishes like this, in between all of the fun recipe development stuff. No frills, just classic flavors, easy, fresh, seasonal and light. Most days you will find me eating zucchini noodles, cucumber ribbons or a lettuce wrap of some sort for lunch. If these types of recipes and meals make me dance around my kitchen with joy and really satisfy me, surely I cannot be alone!
Stepping outside first thing in the morning, walking barefoot through the dew covered grass, making my way across the yard to my garden – has to be one of the highlights of my day. Many times this early morning stroll determines the rest of the meals for the day and I just adore that. Letting nature and the season decide for me.
While having a garden can at times feel like another job, most of the time it feels like pretty much THE most brilliant thing you could ever do. It legitimately feels like free food whenever I bring that morning’s bounty into the kitchen. Plus, I really love knowing exactly where my food is coming from and I enjoy connecting with my home and my surroundings in this way. Pulling weeds and looking for things ready to be picked, it is all quite therapeutic and meditative, in a way.
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Zucchini Noodle Shakshuka {gluten-free}
It’s quite possible you have heard of Shakshuka (or Shakshouka) before, but it’s also pretty likely you haven’t. If you haven’t – I am excited to introduce you to one of the yummiest egg dishes you ever will have. I myself hadn’t heard of Shakshuka before late last year sometime. I recall seeing a photo of it in a cookbook then on Pinterest and it was love at first (and second) sight, before I ever even tasted it. I have made it several times since discovering it, always changing things up a little here and there. Bottom line is no matter how I make it, it’s precisely my kind of meal – an egg dish that can literally work for any meal. Breakfast, lunch or dinner.
Though the origin of Shakshuka is somewhat uncertain, it is a staple dish in Israeli, Morrocan, Tunisian and Egyptian cuisines, among many, many others. Wikipedia (and several other sources) says it to be of Tunisian origin – which is perfect considering my love of Tunisian olive oil.
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Zucchini Noodles – Vegan & Gluten-free, Raw option
I have said it before and I will say it again…I am a self-proclaimed pasta addict. If I could, I would eat pasta every single day. However, I know that carbs and I (read my butt and thighs) don’t necessarily see eye to eye on this idea. I would likely be the size of a house if I ate pasta every day! I have to be mindful of the amount of grains I consume, I am starting to learn. Healthy, whole-grain, gluten-free or otherwise, I tend to find myself feeling more bloated and heavy when I eat a lot of carbs. I have been trying to be a bit more aware of this fact as of late. So, if I have a sandwich or a wrap for lunch, I will skip out on any starch with dinner, if I know dinner is going to be pasta, I will have a big salad for lunch!
As of late, with the insane amount of vegetables we have from our CSA, I have really been enjoying the challenge of what to do with everything. With all of the lettuce, we have been eating salads like they are going out of style but I have been trying to be a bit more creative with the other foods we have gotten. In this past Saturday’s share, we got 9 zucchini, 4 yellow squash, a huge handful of green beans, some radishes, green onions and some more lettuce. On Sunday, I decided I wanted to experiment and try using my mandoline slicer to make these delicious zucchini noodles and it worked out great! I decided to blanch them quick in boiling water, to make the noodles a bit more tender, but feel free to go totally raw, too – just sprinkle a little salt on the noodles and let them sit for a bit to drain some of the excess moisture off, squeeze off the water and serve with your favorite sauce. It would be just as delicious.
If you don’t have a mandoline slicer, you can also use a vegetable peeler to make ribbons. I do that often to add some of the raw zucchini or yellow squash to my big green salads, I love how the yellow squash adds color and texture. They also make julienne peelers, which I have never used, but would likely provide similar results to the mandoline slicer.
I was pleasantly surprised at how perfect the zucchini lent itself to being eaten as noodles. I tossed the noodles in some of the garlic scape and Swiss chard pesto that I had previously made and it was a super refreshing and simple lunch, ready in minutes! I enjoyed it so much that I made them again last night and tossed it with a little roasted garlic marinara and fresh basil from the garden. It was perfect, light and super simple.
[print_this]Zucchini Noodles
serves 2- 1 large (or 2 medium-ish) zucchini
- 1 cup sauce of your choice
Using a mandoline slicer (vegetable peeler or julienne peeler) run the zucchini on all four sides across the mandoline slicer on the 1/8″ julienne setting, slice the zucchini until you reach the seeds in the middle and then stop (the seeds will cause the noodles to fall apart). Use your fingers to separate the strands from each other and if you wish, you can place them in between paper towels to bring out some of the excess moisture, or you can lay them in a colander or strainer and sprinkle with a little salt to do the same. I have made them both ways (with salting and without), and I didn’t notice a huge difference.
Bring a large sauce pan of salted water to a rolling boil, add the zucchini noodles and allow them to cook for just two minutes. Remove the noodles from the boiling water and add them to a serving bowl with sauce. Toss gently and serve immediately. I have also read then you can quickly cook them in a pan with a little olive oil, again just for a minute or two. I will have to try that soon.
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