Healthy Recipe: Zucchini Noodles with Pesto & Grilled Shrimp

Zucchini Noodles with Pesto & Grilled Shrimp

Recipe by Charity Ferreira | Photo by Erin Kunkel

Whether you’re paleo or just trying to eat fewer refined carbs, zucchini noodles are a fresh, green, low-calorie alternative to pasta, and they’re incredibly fast to prep and cook. You can pick up a spiralizer cutting tool if you want to make “zoodles” often, but a mandoline or a veggie peeler also gets the job done. Try them with this flavorful nutty pesto and grilled shrimp, finished with a big squeeze of lemon.

Ingredients

For the pesto:
2 cups (2 oz/60 g) packed fresh basil leaves
Handful fresh mint leaves (about 10 leaves)
½ cup (2½ oz/75 g) roughly chopped almonds, toasted
¼ cup (2 fl oz/60 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 clove garlic, peeled
Salt and freshly ground pepper

6 zucchini
1 lb (500 g) shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
4 teaspoons olive oil
Lemon wedges, for serving (optional)

Instructions

To make the pesto, in a food processor, add the basil, mint, almonds, olive oil, water, lemon juice, garlic, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Process until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl once or twice. Set aside.

Rinse and dry the zucchini and trim both ends. Using a spiral cutter, make zucchini noodles, cleaning the blade after each zucchini is finished. Chop the pile of zucchini noodles a few times so that you have slightly shorter strands. (If you don’t have a spiral cutter, you can use a mandoline or a peeler to cut long julienne or ribbons.)

In a bowl, add the shrimp, lemon juice, 2 teaspoons of the olive oil, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Turn to coat. Cover and refrigerate until ready to grill.

While the shrimp is marinating, preheat a grill over medium-high heat. Oil the grate.

Drain the shrimp and thread them onto 4 metal skewers. Place the shrimp over the hottest part of the grill and cook, turning once, until they are bright pink and opaque, about 4 to 5 minutes total.

Meanwhile, in a large nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat, warm the remaining 2 teaspoons of oil. Add zucchini noodles and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring often, just until the noodles are bright green and slightly softened, 3 to 5 minutes.

Toss the noodles gently with the pesto sauce. Divide the noodles between bowls. Push the grilled shrimp off skewers onto each portion. Top with the lemon slices, if you like, and serve warm.

Makes 4 servings

Nutrition Facts (per serving)

Calories 429
Protein 23 g
Total fat 30 g
Saturated fat 4 g
Carbs 23 g
Fiber 8 g
Sugar 11 g
Sodium 681 mg

Hungry for more? Check out 5 Ways to Try the Veggie Noodle Trend.

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