For some reason, unbeknownst to me, pesto is not a welcome ingredient in my family. If mentioned, my parents would scrunch their noses. At large family gatherings, there was never any pesto-containing dishes. No one ever spoke of it. I grew up thinking it was something extremely fancy and disgusting at the same time (like caviar).
It wasn't until I was in my 20's that I actually tried pesto and then the "Great Period of Pesto-Obsession" soon followed. I bought a food processor purely for the sake of making pesto. I would make huge batches of it at once, trying different recipes, and I had a back stock of pesto in the freezer, just in case there was ever an emergency where we needed pesto (I was in my 20's. I have no idea what kind of emergencies I thought could occur where pesto would be the ultimate solution, but my freezer was packed). The first time I saw the words "Cilantro Pesto" on a menu, it blew my mind to know that you could actually make pesto with something other than basil. Fast forward to now, 10 or so odd years (who's counting?) later, with me making pesto out of anything green I can get my hands on.
I know that since becoming vegetarian, and even more so now since becoming vegan, my family is somewhat perplexed by the things I choose to eat. Pesto is one of those things (as well as hummus, butternut squash, or quinoa, but I digress). I was actually on the phone with my mom while I was making this dish, and she could not understand the concept of making pasta from zucchini. When I mentioned the pesto, the subject was quickly changed. In my earlier years, I probably would have had the same reaction. My mom is pretty adorable.
Zucchini Pasta is one of my favorite things to do with zucchini. When our CSA sent us some, I knew exactly what it's fate was as soon as I saw it, especially since I still had some pesto left from this recipe, stored safely in my freezer. I added some mushrooms because I love them and would put them in everything, if I had no willpower. This dish is everything I would not have eaten in my younger years- the "exotic" idea of using zucchini as pasta, the basic mushrooms (one or both of my parents did not care for them- my memory escapes me as to which parent- so we never ate them in our house), and then the "taboo" pesto. It really represents who I have become- a person very proud of my plant-based diet.
ZUCCHINI PASTA with PESTO & MUSHROOMS
Ingredients:
- 2-3 zucchini
- 14-15 crimini mushrooms, thinly sliced
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 cup pesto
Instructions:
- Using a mandoline, thinly slice the zucchini lengthwise into long ribbons. Cut those ribbons in half, lengthwise. If you have a vegetable spiraler (Lucky!!!), by all means, use that to magically turn your zucchini into strands of pasta.
- Bring a medium sized pot of water to a boil. Add your zucchini pasta and boil for no longer than two minutes. Strain and rinse with cold water to prevent it from cooking any further. You can leave this step out, if you’d like to keep it raw. Either way, let the zucchini sit in the strainer or colander for about 5 minutes, to get rid of excess moisture.
- Heat a frying pan over medium heat for about 30 seconds. Add the mushrooms and turn the heat down to medium low, stir the mushrooms every few minutes or so, letting them brown in their own juices. Continue to “brown” the mushrooms for about 10 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.
- Add the pesto sauce to the mushrooms and heat over medium-low heat. Place the zucchini pasta in a serving bowl. Once the pesto and mushrooms are fully heated, , add to the bowl of zucchini pasta and mix to combine. Alternatively, you can divide the pasta between serving plates, and top with desired amount of pesto mushroom sauce.
- Serve warm, either alone or with a bit of quinoa or rice (or whatever else you’d prefer). Enjoy!
Were there any foods that weren't eaten in your house while you were growing up?
All Photos by Chris Miller
© Kristy Turner and Keepin' It Kind, 2012. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material (content and images) without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Kristy Turner and Keepin' It Kind with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
Averil
Oh yum... I love pesto and zucchini, so this is a must try dish for me. Love the vibrant green of the zucchini which really perks up the dish visually.
Gabby @ the veggie nook
Delicious! 3 of my favourite things right there- zucchini pasta, pesto and mushrooms- it's like you were making this for me 🙂
My family is mistified by the way I eat too lol. Gotta love them.
Somer
Kristy! You are so adorable. That dish looks delish! Pesto is the shiz! Proud of you and your plant based diet, even if your parents don't understand. Your awesome blog is totally inspiring. I made a salad loosely based on your VVP dish here http://goodcleanfood.wordpress.com/2012/05/15/tasty-tuesday-series-part-iii-the-vegan-mothers-day-feast/
Kristen
Looking good! Such bright vibrant food always draws me in!
Cadry
I got a spiralizer a month or so ago with a Groupon coupon... I know what I need to make! I hadn't thought about briefly cooking the zucchini to soften it a bit. Good idea! I just made a batch of pesto yesterday. Now that summer is here and basil is in season, I'm eating it several times a week. Have you tried the Spork Fed pesto? It's wonderful. I have it coming out of my pores! (Hopefully not literally!)
CJ at Food Stories
I love zucchini pasta and pesto so it's only right to put them together ... great idea!
Heather
I love how simply put together this recipe is - I too am a huge fan of pesto...I have a large batch of Roasted Red Pepper Kale Pili Pesto and Scape Pesto in my freezer as I type this 🙂
CJ at Food Stories
Kristy ... You have been nominated for my NEW Food Stories Award for Excellence in Storytelling. Check out my site for the details.
Richgail
I love the creaminess of this pasta dish. I would like to try this raw. Thanks for sharing. I might just get into a Great Pesto Obsession myself!
keepinitkind
I've tried it raw, and it's pretty fantastic- perfect for a warm summer night! I hope you like it, Richgail!
The Steaming Pot
I've recently become curious about zucchini - it is not a vegetable I've eaten much of and given its cost in India, it is something of an extravagance to use it. This recipe sounds like one to make the expense worthwhile :-). Can't wait to try it out.
keepinitkind
How interesting- I never would have thought that zucchini isn't a commonplace vegetable everywhere, as it is here. They are really versatile and so tasty- if you give 'em a shot, I hope you like them! Thank you so much for stopping by! 🙂
stargirl
thanks for sharing! may i know how many servings this recipe makes?
keepinitkind
Thank you! I would say it would make 2 entree sized servings or 3-4 side dish sized servings. I hope that helps!
Sue
Always looking for pesto recipes and this one sounds great. Since we have so much of it from our garden, I'm going to substitute the zucchini with yellow squash and try your recipe for lunch. Thanks.
keepinitkind
Thank you! I think you're going to love this recipe, Sue! 🙂
David
Thanks for this seemingly yummy recipe. I will probable try it tomorrow. I just wanted to ask if I can use a spiralizer instead of a mandoline on the zucchini. I think that a spiralizer will be appropriate. What do you think?
Trish
Yummo! My husband and I scoffed this down. I grabbed a low-fat pesto recipe from another site. Had never thought to add mushrooms! Delish addition to the pesto. Thanks so much!! Will be making this many more times 😉