Pasta With Half The Carbs
Half the carbs pasta
Part of my resolution this year is to lose some weight and try to eat more healthful foods. I respond really well to low carb diets and do lose weight pretty quickly but I am a carb addict, I love bread and pasta and rice. Once I get used to eliminating or lowering my carb intake it becomes easy but the first week or so is a bit difficult. I created this dish to ease myself into a reduced carb lifestyle. It’s fresh and very simple to prepare. I use less than half the amount of pasta that I normally would and replaced it with julienned zucchini. The hot pasta is tossed with the zucchini (raw), oven roasted (caramelized) cherry tomatoes, roasted garlic and a nice handful of chopped flat leaf parsley. Finish with the grated or shaved cheese of your choice, I used peccorino romano.
Serves 2-3
10 cherry tomatoes halved
2 cloves garlic
1 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped
1 medium zucchini julienned
1/4 lb pasta (dry or fresh)
2 tbs olive oil plus more to drizzle on tomatoes
salt and pepper to taste
grated cheese of your choice
Heat oven to 350 degree’s place cherry tomatoes, garlic cloves on parchment lined baking sheet, sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper and bake for 15-20 minutes, garlic will be soft and tomatoes soft and caramelized, remove from oven and place in serving bowl mashing the garlic, be sure to include the juice from the tomatoes and any caramelized bits of tomato.
Put a large pot of water to boil, julienne the zucchini and add to the tomato and garlic, add the chopped parsley, olive oil and season. When water has come to a full boil add enough salt so that water tastes salty (about 1 – 2 tbs) depending on how much water you have in the pot, add the pasta and cook until done (al dente), remove from pot and add directly to the zucchini and tomatoes, toss to combine, sprinkle with cheese and serve. If it seems too dry add a little pasta water and/or olive oil to moisten.
apuginthekitchen 
A great idea to substitute more veg for the pasta.
Thank you, yes the more vegetables the better, the zucchini strands mixed with the pasta almost become indistinguishable to the eye, I love veggies but sometimes need to fool myself.
That looks delicious!
Thanks Crystal, it tastes great and is quick and easy!
This looks really good, and I love your photo! It’s a great idea to use zucchini in place of pasta. And it’s vegetarian!!
Yes it is, thats another resolution to reduce (not totally give up) meat, I hate making resolutions and don’t even like the word but for lack of a better one I’m stuck. The dish is great though simple and tasty and reducing carbs is crucial for me to lose some weight. Thanks Susan!
This looks so delicious Suzanne!! This is right up my alley too, especially since zucchini is my favorite vegetable. I’m totally making this sometime this week. I always have tons of garlic and zucchini on hand..just need to get the tomatoes. I love that photo and that gorgeous bowl too.
Oh thank you, it is good, I had some frozen homemade pasta that I used and it really was a nice meal.
Oh and I’ll totally use nutritional yeast as my “cheese”. It tastes so similar to Parmesan cheese but with no fat. Of course it’s not quite the same as cheese, but the flavors are very similar once it’s blended/melted into sauce or pasta. I can’t wait!
I am going to get some nutritional yeast at whole foods. I love that it tastes like Parm.
It’s different at first but trust me, blend it in your pestos, dips, sauces or whatever and you’ll see what I mean. I have a spinach pea pesto on my site that I used to make with Parmesan cheese before discovering nutritional yeast and before going vegan, I remade it with nutritional yeast…no different whatsoever. I’ve become so addicted to the stuff and now sprinkle it on everything I eat…salads, pasta, quinoa…it is salty (just like Parmesan) so it also decreases the need for as much salt.
I must give it a try,I bet it would be great on garlic bread, I always sprinkle cheese on it. Yum.
That’s such a fantastic recipe my friend 🙂
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Oh yay!! you are back, must see your post about your trip, Thanks so much it is pretty yummy!
Half the carbs? Great call!
Thank you, yes and you don’t even know it, the zucchini blends right in and better yet its raw so you get the benefit of all the nutrients that are not lost in cooking.
Boy are we on the same page! I too respond well to a low carb life style and it’s my resolution for this year. Your pasta sounds wonderful for my once a week “treat”!
Yes low, really low carb diet works great for me, and when I am in full diet mode this would not even fit in the plan Next week starts the regimen starting with Dr. Oz’s 3 day detox.
This looks so delicious on every level possible! I definitely am going to try this recipe. Love the olive oil drizzle! I also love the bowl that the pasta is in 🙂
You have the best dishes and cookware!
Thanks, the dish was really good, I love zucchini and pasta well, I love that too but am trying to watch the carbs. I got the bowl from pottery barn, it’s the perfect pasta bowl. Thanks so much.
Great idea! The pasta/zucchini combo reminds me of a dish my grandmother use to make, she use to add a little scrambled egg, not sure how she put it together, but anyway, will be making your version, soon! Happy New Year!
Oh scrambled egg would be wonderful in this, reminds me of pasta piselli only with zucchini. Thanks Linda, would really love feedback if you make it. I consider you an expert on Italian cuisine.
I will get back to you when I do, have a couple other recipes at the top of my list! Thanks for your comment 🙂
Hi!!! I made this recipe for dinner and it was delicious, rave review from my husband, too! Love your method of roasting the garlic & tomatoes and then smashing it all 🙂
Oh thank you so much, so glad you and hubby enjoyed. It’s a simple recipe but really tasty. I so appreciate the feedback thank you very much.
Thank you so much!